ENVIRONMENT FOOD AND RURAL AFFAIRS

Carbon Emissions: Government Departments

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what steps his Department is taking to reduce carbon dioxide emissions on the Government estate in 2008.

Phil Woolas: DEFRA, like all Government Departments, is committed, through the sustainable operations targets for the Government Office Estate, to reducing carbon emissions from offices by 12.5 per cent. by 2010-11 and 30 per cent. by 2020, relative to 1999-2000 levels.
	Working with the Carbon Trust, DEFRA has developed a comprehensive and fully costed Carbon Management Programme (CMP), which is already delivering significant savings across the DEFRA Network Estate.

Fisheries: Enforcement

Bill Wiggin: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if he will break down by the subheading his Department's budget for fisheries enforcement in 2007-08; and if he will make a statement.

Jonathan R Shaw: The main budget for fisheries enforcement-related expenditure by subheading for the Marine and Fisheries Agency for 2007-08 is as follows:
	
		
			   £ million 
			 Pay and non pay (estimated)(1) 3.8 
			 Surface surveillance 6.4 
			 Aerial surveillance 1.8 
			 Satellite monitoring and fisheries management and enforcement IT systems 0.4 plus 0.6 held in central DEFRA budgets 
			 (1) There is no specific pay and non pay allocation for fisheries enforcement. The above figure is a best estimate, calculated on the basis of the percentage time spent on fisheries enforcement work during 2007 deducted from the total 2007-08 pay and non pay allocation.

Floods: Warnings

Anne McIntosh: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if he will invite local authorities to encourage parish councillors to act as flood wardens to alert the most vulnerable people to imminent risk of floods.

Phil Woolas: Sir Michael Pitt's independent interim report on the summer 2007 floods addresses this area. My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State has stated that the Government agree with all 15 of Sir Michael's urgent recommendations and will work with other organisations involved in implementing them.
	I understand that in some areas parish councillors form part of the voluntary warden scheme. However, DEFRA policy, while encouraging volunteers, does not depend on them.

Irish Sea: Pollution

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if he will make a statement on the recent co-operation between the Government and the Government of the Republic of Ireland on the monitoring of pollution in the Irish sea.

Jonathan R Shaw: The Irish sea is bounded by England and Wales, Scotland, Northern Ireland and the Irish Republic and these regions will all have their specific mechanisms for monitoring and reporting on pollution in the Irish sea.
	Partnership-working on the state of the Irish sea is carried out in the framework of the OSPAR Convention for the Protection of the North East Atlantic to which the UK and the Republic of Ireland are Contracting parties. Regular assessments are carried out, information gathered by the various organisations is brought together and assessments are made and published in the OSPAR Quality Status Report (QSR). The last QSR was published in the year 2000, and included a regional report on the Celtic seas. The next QSR will be published in 2010.

Nitrate Vulnerable Zones

Nicholas Winterton: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if his Department will ensure that less than 70 per cent. of England will be designated as nitrate vulnerable zones (NVZs); what research has been used by his Department in its designation process for NVZs; and if he will make a statement.

Phil Woolas: Our review of the current nitrate vulnerable zones (NVZs) has shown that coverage needs to be increased from 55 per cent. to about 70 per cent. of England. This is necessary because nitrate pollution has increased in some areas of the country since the last round of NVZ designations in 2002.
	The nitrates directive requires all known areas of land to be designated as nitrate vulnerable zones (NVZs) if they drain to surface freshwaters or groundwaters which contain or could contain, if preventative action is not taken, nitrate concentrations greater than 50mg/l; or natural freshwater lakes, or other freshwater bodies, estuaries, coastal waters and marine waters which are eutrophic or may become so in the near future if protective action is not taken.
	The document 'G1—Summary of methodology for identifying NVZs 2006', which is available on the DEFRA website, provides a description of how water quality monitoring data, collected by the Environment Agency from a network of monitoring points and boreholes, are assessed against the above criteria to identify nitrate-polluted waters, and how areas of land draining to these waters were identified for designation as NVZs.

Nitrate Vulnerable Zones

Nicholas Winterton: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs for what scientific and other reasons under the nitrate vulnerable zones legislation there is  (a) a six month slurry storage requirement for (i) the poultry and (ii) the pig sectors and  (b) a five month requirement for other sectors.

Phil Woolas: The proposed storage capacity requirement of six months for pig slurry and poultry manure and five months for all other slurry was put forward in the recent consultation about implementing the Nitrates Directive in England.
	The supporting document "D4—Rationale for the proposed NVZ Action Programme measures", available to view on our website, provides the reasoning behind the proposed Action Programme measures, including the storage capacity requirement.
	The consultation is now closed and I am carefully considering all the responses before making recommendations on how the implementation of the Nitrates Directive in England should progress.

Nitrate Vulnerable Zones

Nicholas Winterton: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if he will introduce a longer time period for compliance with the requirements of the nitrates vulnerable zone directive.

Phil Woolas: The consultation on implementing the Nitrates Directive in England closed on 13 December 2007. I am carefully considering all the responses before making recommendations on how implementation should progress.

Nitrate Vulnerable Zones

Nicholas Winterton: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if he will make it his policy for the Government's new action programme proposals to be waived in those areas of existing nitrate vulnerable zones exhibiting a long-term decline in levels of nitrate.

Phil Woolas: I am considering under what circumstances removal of land from within an existing Nitrate Vulnerable Zone may be possible in the future. The consultation on implementation of the Nitrates Directive in England, which closed on 13 December, invited stakeholder views on this issue. I am in the process of considering carefully all responses received before making final decisions on how to progress implementation of the Nitrates Directive in England.

Nitrate Vulnerable Zones

Nicholas Winterton: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if his Department will undertake more intensive monitoring of those areas where nitrate vulnerable zone designation has been questioned by farmers and landowners.

Phil Woolas: The consultation on implementing the Nitrates Directive in England closed on 13 December 2007. I am carefully considering all the responses before making recommendations on how implementation should progress.

Nitrate Vulnerable Zones

Patrick McLoughlin: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how his Department takes into account farmers' views on the proposed new nitrate vulnerable zones legislation.

Phil Woolas: The development of proposals for revising the NVZ regulations took account of farmers' views from a series of workshops held over winter 2005-06 and extensive dialogue with the National Farmers Union, the Country Land and Business Association and the Tenant Farmers' Association during the two-year period up to August 2007.
	Farmers have also had the opportunity to comment on the proposals through a public consultation that closed on 13 December, and a further series of workshops conducted in that period. DEFRA is currently analysing more than 700 consultation responses and intends to publish a summary analysis on the Department's website in early 2008.

Nitrates: Agriculture

Nicholas Winterton: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if he will make it his policy to introduce a derogation from the 170kgsN/ha whole farm limit to as near a 250kgsN/ha limit as possible.

Phil Woolas: DEFRA is currently preparing to submit an application to the European Commission for a derogation from the 170kgsN/ha/yr whole farm limit for applications of livestock manure, and we will open discussions with the Commission at the earliest opportunity.

Nitrates: Rivers

Nicholas Winterton: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if he will make a statement on trends in overall nitrate levels in monitored rivers in England.

Phil Woolas: A summary of DEFRA's assessment of nitrate pollution in England, including trends in nitrate concentrations in monitored rivers, is provided in "Nitrates in waters—current status in England (2006)". This paper was published in support of the recent consultation on implementing the Nitrates Directive in England.

Sea Fishing: Licensing

Bill Wiggin: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs 
	(1)  pursuant to the Marine Bill White Paper and associated Regulatory Impact Assessment, what consultation responses have been received by his Department on the proposed recreational sea angling licence; and what response he has made;
	(2)  pursuant to the draft Recreational Sea Angling Strategy, what the timetable is to implement the proposals; and if he will make a statement;
	(3)  whether he plans to designate any fish stocks specifically for recreational use; and if he will make a statement.

Jonathan R Shaw: On 6 December 2007, I launched a consultation on the draft Recreational Sea Angling Strategy which runs until 31 March 2008. The strategy includes consideration of management measures for fish stocks of interest to anglers. Any decisions on the implementation of proposals in the strategy will be made after responses to the consultation have been considered. At that stage, a summary of responses received will be published and individual responses will be publicly available, unless a request has been made for a response to be treated confidentially. A copy of the strategy has been placed in the Library of the House.

Sea Fishing: Licensing

Roger Gale: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what assessment he has made of the effect that the introduction of a sea-angling licence would have upon the economy of UK coastal resorts.

Jonathan R Shaw: The Marine Bill White Paper, published in March 2007, included a proposal for the introduction of a chargeable licensing scheme for sea angling. The regulatory impact assessment (RIA) accompanying the White Paper outlined the costs and benefits of this proposal, with reference to the economic contribution of angling to angling-related businesses and local economies.
	The RIA identified a risk that the introduction of a chargeable sea-angling licence could displace or reduce angling activity. However, this risk would be mitigated by ensuring that any licence fee was set at a level that would not deter or displace activity and by only introducing such a scheme provided there were clear benefits to anglers. The detailed operation of the scheme would be subject to consultation with stakeholders.

Sea Fishing: Licensing

Roger Gale: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what estimate he has made of the costs of the  (a) introduction and  (b) policing of a requirement for recreational sea-anglers to hold a valid sea-angling licence.

Jonathan R Shaw: The Marine Bill White Paper, published in March 2007, includes proposals to introduce a chargeable licensing scheme for recreational sea angling. The regulatory impact assessment (RIA) accompanying the White Paper estimated that the revenue from such a scheme could generate £9 million to £12 million per annum in licence fees, depending on uptake and the rate of the charge. The RIA also estimated the one-off set-up cost to the Government could be between £0.1 million to £1.5 million, with annual running costs, including enforcement, of between £1.2 million and £2.8 million, depending on how the scheme is implemented and the level of compliance.

Seas and Oceans: Biodiversity

Bill Wiggin: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs pursuant to the answer of 12 December 2007,  Official Report, column 712W, on seas and oceans: biodiversity, what legal protection is currently offered to  (a) Braemar Pockmarks,  (b) Darwin Mounds,  (c) Haig Fras,  (d) North Norfolk Sandbanks and Saturn Reef,  (e) Scanner pockmark,  (f) Stanton banks and  (g) Wyville Thomson Ridge; for what reasons each site is not classified as European Offshore marine sites; and if he will make a statement.

Jonathan R Shaw: The Joint Nature Conservation Committee (JNCC) began consultation on these seven offshore sites on 20 December 2007. No decision will be made concerning classification of these sites as European offshore marine sites until the JNCC consultation has concluded and recommendations have been made to Government.
	Presently, the Offshore Marine Conservation (Natural Habitats, &c.) Regulations 2007 do not apply to these sites as a matter of law or as a matter of policy.
	However as stated in my earlier reply, DEFRA will consider what action might reasonably be taken to protect sites. Consenting authorities are encouraged to take note of proposals when considering any licensing or consenting decisions that may affect sites.
	If the JNCC, as our scientific nature conservation advisers, advised us that potential offshore sites are being damaged by fishing activities, we would approach the Commission to ask them to consider proposing protective measures. The JNCC have not indicated that there is any such damage occurring in our current potential sites.

Seas and Oceans: Biodiversity

Bill Wiggin: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs pursuant to the answer of 12 December 2007,  Official Report, column 712W, on seas and oceans: biodiversity, under what legislation protection may be given to the  (a) Braemar Pockmarks,  (b) Darwin Mounds,  (c) Haig Fras,  (d) North Norfolk Sandbanks and Saturn Reef,  (e) Scanner pockmark,  (f) Stanton banks and  (g) Wyville Thomson Ridge sites; and if he will make a statement.

Jonathan R Shaw: The Joint Nature Conservation Committee (JNCC) launched a consultation on these seven offshore sites on 20 December 2007, and it is scheduled to last 12 weeks. Following consultation, the JNCC may recommend to the Government that these sites be submitted to the European Commission for consideration as European offshore marine sites. If the Government then decide to submit these sites to the European Commission they will receive the full legal protection provided by the Marine Conservation (Natural Habitats, &c.) Regulations 2007.

Water Supply

Maria Miller: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what provisions are in place to compensate customers whose water supply is interrupted by  (a) works caused by a leak or burst in a strategic main and  (b) contamination which makes the water supply unfit for human consumption; and if he will make a statement.

Phil Woolas: Customers of water and sewage companies are entitled to payment in recognition of a service failure if a company fails to meet the requirements set out under the guaranteed standards scheme.

Whales

Bill Wiggin: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs 
	(1)  which governments he plans to make representations to support the international moratorium on whaling prior to the IWC60 meeting; and if he will make a statement.;
	(2)  whether he plans to ask non-International Whaling Commission countries to join the IWC prior to the IWC60 meeting to support the international moratorium on whaling; and if he will make a statement;
	(3)  what discussions he has had with representatives of foreign governments in relation to whaling since the IWC59 meeting; and if he will make a statement.

Jonathan R Shaw: The UK forms part of a core anti-whaling grouping within the International Whaling Commission (IWC) and supports the IWC's moratorium on commercial whaling. The UK remains strongly opposed to any attempt to lift or weaken the moratorium and, in the longer term, wishes to see it strengthened. We will be meeting with the core anti-whaling group in the run up to IWC60. Posts abroad will also lobby a wide range of governments prior to the meeting to ensure support for the moratorium.
	The UK has led efforts to recruit more conservation-minded countries to the IWC through our publication 'Protecting Whales—A Global Responsibility'. This publication has recently been updated and was re-released on 21 December 2007. In the coming weeks, posts will deliver the updated version to host governments, and will continue to engage in discussion with their counterparts on whaling at every appropriate opportunity.
	This year, my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State will write to 18 countries encouraging them to join the IWC for the greater protection of whales.
	The UK Government have consistently voiced their opposition to Japanese "scientific" whaling. Most recently, on 8 January, I called in the deputy ambassador from the Japanese embassy in London to express the UK's outrage and urge Japan to end its slaughter of whales.
	On 21 December 2007, the UK along with 29 other countries took part in a demarché to the Japanese Government calling on Japan to
	"cease all its lethal scientific research on whales, and assure the immediate return of the vessels which are implementing JARPA II" (the Japanese 'scientific' Research Programme in the Antarctic).

WALES

Tower Colliery

Ann Clwyd: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales if he will make a statement on the closure of Tower Colliery.

Peter Hain: I would like to commend the team at Tower Colliery on their tremendous success and inspiring journey, demonstrating how a self-managed coal mine can work.

Defence

Mark Pritchard: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Defence on the transfer of jobs from RAF Cosford to RAF St. Athan.

Huw Irranca-Davies: The Secretary of State and I have regular discussions with the Secretary of State for Defence on a range of defence issues.
	I understand that the relocation of jobs from RAF Cosford to St. Athan will be completed by 2013.

Economy

David Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what recent discussions he has had with the First Minister on the future of the economy in Wales.

Huw Irranca-Davies: My right hon. Friend has had regular discussions with the First Minister on all aspects of the Welsh economy.

Economy

David Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what recent discussions he has had with the First Minister on the future of the economy in Wales.

Huw Irranca-Davies: I have regular discussions with the First Minister on all aspects of the Welsh economy.

World Heritage Sites

Martyn Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what recent representations he has received on the world heritage sites in Wales.

Huw Irranca-Davies: My right hon. Friend and I have recently received representations to support the World Heritage bid for Pontcysyllte Aqueduct, which lies within my hon. Friend's constituency.
	We were proud to add our support to this world class piece of British engineering; and I would like to thank and congratulate all those who have worked so very hard and put so much dedication into campaigning to get the aqueduct recognised as a World Heritage site.

Seaside Towns

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what meetings he has had with Cabinet and Welsh Assembly Government colleagues on the co-ordination of policy on seaside towns in Wales.

Huw Irranca-Davies: My right hon. Friend and I regularly meet ministerial colleagues and Welsh Assembly Government colleagues to discuss issues affecting Wales, including the co-ordination of policies affecting Wales.
	I pay tribute to the tireless work of my hon. Friend in campaigning for the improvement of the seaside towns in his constituency.

Prisons

Jennifer Willott: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what recent assessment he has made of levels of prison overcrowding in Wales.

Huw Irranca-Davies: The Government are committed to ensuring that there are enough prison places throughout England and Wales.

Health Services: Cross Border Cooperation

Peter Bone: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what recent discussions he has had with the First Minister on cross-border health service issues affecting England and Wales.

Peter Hain: I have regular discussions with the First Minister on a range of issues, including the provision of cross border health services affecting Wales and England.

Child Poverty

Hywel Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions on the further steps he is taking to meet the Government's target to reduce child poverty in Wales.

Peter Hain: The reforms set out in Ready for Work; next steps to full employment will reduce child poverty by getting more parents, particularly lone parents off benefits and back into work.

DEFENCE

Afghanistan: Peacekeeping Operations

Liam Fox: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence pursuant to the answer of 7 January 2008,  Official Report, column 19W, on Afghanistan: peacekeeping operations, how many civilians are employed by his Department for the take-off and landing phase of unmanned aerial vehicles; from what company these civilians are contracted; and what the nationality of each civilian so employed was in each year since 2005.

Bob Ainsworth: One civilian contractor is deployed in Afghanistan to assist UK forces with the take-off and landing phases of UAVs. The individual deployed at any one time is drawn from a pool of five trained personnel, all of whom are American nationals. The civilian contractors are not directly employed by the MOD but supplied through Brandes, a sub-contractor of Thales, the prime contractor for this system. A civilian has been employed in this role since September 2007, the date on which UAV operations of this type commenced in Afghanistan.

Armed Forces: Deployment

Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what steps the Government has taken to assist personnel with settling back into the community on return from operational duties.

Derek Twigg: holding answer 15 January 2008
	I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave on 14 January 2008,  Official Report, columns 877-78W, to the hon. Member for North Cornwall (Dan Rogerson).

Armed Forces: Driving

Liam Fox: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will place in the Library copies of his Department's Annual Road Safety Report issued since 1997-98.

Derek Twigg: I will arrange for the documents to be placed in the Library of the House. The reports can also be found at:
	http://www.transportsafety.dii.r.mil.uk/articles/pmoArticle.asp?articleheader=Defence%20Annual%20Road%20Safety%20Report

Armed Forces: Housing

Henry Bellingham: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many housing association tenants live in his Department's accommodation.

Derek Twigg: There are no housing association tenants living in service accommodation.

Armed Forces: Mental Health

Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what steps the Government have taken to tackle mental health issues arising among armed forces personnel, with particular reference to those returning from operational duty.

Derek Twigg: holding answer 15 January 2008
	We recognise that operational deployments can be very stressful experiences and to that end measures are in place to increase awareness at all levels and to mitigate the development of operational stresses. Medical staff and the Chain of Command are trained to recognise signs of mental illness and stress and where practicable a period of "decompression" is arranged for the returning unit between the end of the operational deployment and post operational leave. Additionally pre- and post-deployment talks are given to educate personnel and their families to the possible after-affects of an operational deployment and, if required, what medical and welfare support is available.
	For those who require it, we provide treatment primarily through our 15 military Departments of Community Mental Health across the UK (plus satellite centres overseas), which provide out-patient mental healthcare. A wide range of psychiatric and psychological treatments are available, including medication, psychological therapies, and environmental adjustment where appropriate. The Defence Mental Health Services have extensive experience in psychological treatments for mental health problems in general, and psychological injury in particular.
	In-patient care, when necessary, is provided in psychiatric units belonging to the Priory Group of Hospitals, through a central contract with MOD. The arrangements with the Priory Group mean that the majority of patients can be treated much closer to their parent units than was the case when we maintained the last of our own psychiatric hospitals.

Armed Forces: Peace Establishment

Patrick Mercer: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence 
	(1)  what the peace establishment was of the 4th Regiment of the Royal Artillery before its deployment to Afghanistan; what the strength was of the Regiment on deployment; how many reinforcements to the Regiment were received from  (a) the regular Army,  (b) the Territorial Army and  (c) the regular Army Reserves; how many of all ranks were (i) left behind on recruitment duties, (ii) physically unfit to deploy and (iii) left behind in barracks to form a rear party; and what the Regiment's battle casualty replacement policy is;
	(2)  what the peace establishment was of the 1st Battalion Coldstream Guards before its deployment to Afghanistan; what the strength was of the Battalion on deployment; how many reinforcements to the Battalion were received from  (a) the regular Army,  (b) the Territorial Army and  (c) the regular Army Reserves; how many of all ranks were (i) left behind on recruitment duties, (ii) physically unfit to deploy and (iii) left behind in barracks to form a rear party; and what the Battalion's battle casualty replacement policy is;
	(3)  what the peace establishment was of the Household Cavalry Regiment before its deployment to Afghanistan; what the strength was of the Regiment on deployment; how many reinforcements to the Regiment were received from  (a) the regular Army,  (b) the Territorial Army and  (c) the regular Army Reserves; how many of all ranks were (i) left behind on recruitment duties, (ii) physically unfit to deploy and (iii) left behind in barracks to form a rear party; and what the Regiment's battle casualty replacement policy is;
	(4)  what the peace establishment was of the 1st Battalion Royal Gurkha Rifles before its deployment to Afghanistan; what the strength was of the Battalion on deployment; how many reinforcements to the Battalion were received from  (a) the regular Army,  (b) the Territorial Army and  (c) the regular Army Reserves; how many of all ranks were (i) left behind on recruitment duties, (ii) physically unfit to deploy and (iii) left behind in barracks to form a rear party; and what the Battalion's battle casualty replacement policy is.

Bob Ainsworth: The following table provides the information requested. Numbers are rounded to the nearest 100 or where less than 100 to the nearest 10, as appropriate:
	
		
			  Number 
			   4th Regiment Royal Artillery  1st( ) Battalion Coldstream Guards  Household Cavalry Regiment  1st Battalion Royal Gurkha Rifles 
			 Peacetime establishment prior to deployment. 600 600 500 600(1) 
			 Strength on Deployment 400 500 200(2) 600 
			 Level of reinforcement from Regular Army 40 0 0 <10 
			 Level of reinforcement from regular Army Reserves <10 <10 0 0 
			 Level of reinforcement from Territorial Army 20 0 10 <10 
			 Unit personnel left behind on recruiting duties or were physically unfit to deploy 100 70 30 50 
			 Rear Party Strength(3) 80 70 100 200 
			 (1) Prior to deployment 1 RGR were manned over their establishment requirement, their actual strength was 800. (2) Only one squadron of the Household Cavalry Regiment has deployed. (3) Figures for rear party strength exclude those personnel listed as physically unfit to deploy or on recruiting duties. 
		
	
	I refer the hon. Member to my answer of 7 January  Official Report, column 50W that outlines the policy on battlefield casualty replacement which applies across the Army.

Armoured Fighting Vehicles

Ann Winterton: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many explosive devices have been activated against or by  (a) Mastiff and  (b) Vector/Pinzgauer vehicles since being deployed to theatre; how many (i) deaths and (ii) injuries have resulted in relation to each type of vehicle; and how many vehicles have been damaged beyond repair.

Bob Ainsworth: I have nothing to add to the answers given by me on 30 October 2007,  Official Report, columns 1343-44W to the hon. Member for North Shropshire (Mr Paterson).

Delivery Services

Alistair Carmichael: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence which companies are under contract to his Department to provide mail services.

Bob Ainsworth: I refer the hon. Member to the answer my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Defence gave on 22 March 2007,  Official Report, column 1034W, to the hon. Member for South-West Norfolk (Mr. Fraser).

Departmental Public Expenditure

Liam Fox: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the total expenditure in near cash terms was in each financial year since 2000-01 as listed in his Department's resource account code hierarchy.

Bob Ainsworth: I will write to the hon. Member and place a copy of my letter in the Library of the House.
	 Substantive answer from Bob Ainsworth to Liam Fox:
	I undertook to write to you in answer to your parliamentary question on 7 January 2008,  Official Report, column 42W, about the total expenditure in near cash terms in each financial year since 2000-01 as listed in the MOD's resource account code hierarchy.
	I provided a detailed breakdown of the MOD's Outturns for the financial years 2001-02 to 2007-07 in my letter of 30 November 2007 to Oliver Letwin, a copy of which is available in the Library of the House. I enclose a copy for ease of reference. The Department did not operate a near cash regime prior to 2001-02. Near cash figures are not readily available at resource account level and could only be provided at disproportionate cost.

Departmental Recycling

Eric Pickles: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what recycling scheme is in operation in each building operated by his Department.

Derek Twigg: The information is not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
	The Department's recycling policy states that all non-hazardous waste products especially those generated from offices are recycled, this including, for example, paper, glass, aluminium cans, fluorescent tubes, printer cartridges, toners etc.
	It is the responsibility of the organisation within the Department that owns or manages the individual building, site or establishment to introduce a recycling scheme in accordance with this policy which is dependent upon local recycling availability and local recycling infrastructure.

Departmental Recycling

Brian Jenkins: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what weight of paper his Department recycled in each of the last five years.

Derek Twigg: The information is not held in the format requested, however information is available on the amount of waste produced and the total amount recycled. I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave on 18 December 2007,  Official Report, column 1457W, to the hon. Member for South Holland and The Deepings (Mr. Hayes).

Iraq: Peacekeeping Operations

Liam Fox: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many British service members the 25 December 2007 Permanent Joint Headquarters Personnel Report stated were in  (a) Iraq,  (b) Kuwait,  (c) Bahrain,  (d) Oman,  (e) Qatar and  (f) at sea in support of Operation Telic.

Des Browne: holding answer 10 January 2008
	 Figures are not available for 25 December 2007. The following table provides the number, of UK service personnel deployed on operations in the locations specified as at 26 December 2007 taken from the personnel report of that date. Numbers for Iraq are rounded to the nearest 100, and for other countries to the nearest 10.
	
		
			  Location  Number 
			 Iraq 4,600 
			 Kuwait 320 
			 Bahrain 30 
			 Oman 210 
			 Qatar 420 
			 At sea 920 
		
	
	The number of personnel in theatre will naturally fluctuate on a daily basis for a variety of reasons, including leave (rest and recuperation), temporary absence for training, evacuation for medical reasons, the roulement offerees and other factors. Personnel deployed in Kuwait, Bahrain, Oman, Qatar or at sea provide support both to Operation Telic and to other operations in the region.

Kuwait

Liam Fox: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many of his Department's personnel were based in Kuwait in support of Operation Telic in each year since 2003.

Des Browne: Following the end of combat operations in Iraq in 2003, the number of UK forces based permanently in Kuwait was reduced to a small contingent responsible for defence diplomacy and support to operations. The size of this contingent fluctuates naturally and we do not have separate records for 2004 and 2005 (for which figures could be provided only at disproportionate cost). However mid and end year numbers (rounded to the nearest five) for the other years requested are as follows:
	
		
			   Personnel 
			 2003  
			 Mid year 610 
			 End year 190 
			   
			 2004  
			 Mid year None recorded 
			 End year None recorded 
			   
			 2005  
			 Mid year None recorded 
			 End year None recorded 
			   
			 2006  
			 Mid year 30 
			 End year 10 
			   
			 2007  
			 Mid year 20 
			 End year 330 
		
	
	As of 6 January 2008, the UK had some 380 logistic and support personnel deployed in Kuwait. These figures do not include those temporarily deployed in connection with roulements and other temporary support activities.

Ministry of Defence Police and Guarding Agency: Manpower

Liam Fox: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many Ministry of Defence police officers there were in each year since 1997.

Derek Twigg: The figures for the number of Ministry of Defence police (MDP) officers since 1997 are provided in the following table.
	
		
			   Number of MDP officers 
			 1997 3,714 
			 1998 3,625 
			 1999 3,568 
			 2000 3,393 
			 2001 3,257 
			 2002 3,247 
			 2003 3,290 
			 2004 3,322 
			 2005 3,415 
			 2006 3,465 
			 2007 3,447

Princess Royal Barracks

Lembit �pik: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what measures he proposes to take to preserve the site-based evidence relating to the deaths of army recruits at Deepcut barracks between 1995 and 2002 in the event of the closure and disposal of the Deepcut site.

Bob Ainsworth: Responsibility for evidence relating to the deaths of the four recruits at Deepcut between 1995 and 2002 lies with Surrey Police, who undertook the investigations. The Ministry of Defence has not been required to retain any on-site evidence.

RAF Lyneham

James Gray: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence on what dates the  (a) C130K and  (b) C130J Hercules fleets will be moving from RAF Lyneham to RAF Brize Norton.

Bob Ainsworth: The move of the C130K and C130J fleets from RAF Lyneham to RAF Brize Norton is being planned for summer 2011. The transfer is planned to complete to enable the Royal Air Force to vacate RAF Lyneham by the end of 2012. While it had been previously announced that the C130K fleet would remain at RAF Lyneham until its out of service date, further planning has identified operational benefits and logistic efficiencies from keeping the two aircraft types collocated.

RAF Lyneham

James Gray: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what estimate his Department has made of the effect on the number of civilians employed at RAF Lyneham of the transfer of the support contract to a new contractor.

Bob Ainsworth: The Department does not specify how many personnel the contractor should employ: instead an output specification is used as the basis for the contract. It is the new contractor's decision as to how many people they employ to satisfy the requirement.
	The new contractor is currently making plans to take over the service contract at RAF Lyneham from 1 April 2008. The scope of the new contract is the same as the old contract and there are no plans to change the number of MOD civil servants employed at RAF Lyneham on the basis of this new service contract.

HOUSE OF COMMONS COMMISSION

House of Commons Finance and Administration Department: Costs

Martyn Jones: To ask the hon. Member for North Devon, representing the House of Commons Commission how much the Department of Finance and Administration cost to run in  (a) 1986,  (b) 1996 and  (c) 2006.

Nick Harvey: The total resource cost of running the former Department of Finance and Administration for the year ended 31 March 2006 was 17,953,000. This figure includes a significant level of corporate expenditure which is not directly attributable to the direct costs of running the Department. Some of the larger corporate items during 2005-06 included pension contributions (10,277,000), contracts management (608,000), and child care vouchers (217,000).
	Comparisons with 1986 and 1996 are difficult because of organisational changes and the accounts being cash rather than resource based. The direct cash cost of running the Administration Department in 1986 was 2,372,000; and the Department of Finance and Administration in 1996 was 8,252,000.

House of Commons Finance and Administration Department: Manpower

Martyn Jones: To ask the hon. Member for North Devon, representing the House of Commons Commission how many members of staff worked in the Department of Finance and Administration in  (a) 1986,  (b) 1996 and  (c) 2006.

Nick Harvey: The Department of Finance and Administration had the following staff in post as at 31 March:
	1986: 95
	1996: 114
	2006: 151

House of Commons: Planning

Richard Younger-Ross: To ask the hon. Member for North Devon, representing the House of Commons Commission how many building projects the Commission has commissioned since 1997; and how many of them were  (a) over budget and  (b) late.

Nick Harvey: I regret that information to this level of detail cannot be readily produced without disproportionate cost, but if my hon. Friend wished to table a more specific question about a particular project I shall endeavour to give him a full reply.

Poultry Meat

Mark Oaten: To ask the hon. Member for North Devon, representing the House of Commons Commission what proportion of chicken served on the House of Commons estate was free range in the most recent period for which figures are available.

Nick Harvey: During calendar year 2007, 75,300 was spent on chicken meat (fresh); 7,400 was spent on free-range chicken (that is, just under 10 per cent. of expenditure on chicken). As many products are purchased as individual items, not by weight, the proportion by weight is estimated at 7 per cent. of the total.
	Most of the free range products purchased were chicken breasts. Certain chicken products are not readily available as free range, for example boiling fowl, chicken wings and halalthese amounted to 6 per cent. of expenditure.
	It is the House of Commons catering service's policy to buy chicken from two reliable suppliers with very high standards of food safety. All fresh poultry products purchased, including chicken, are fully traceable to the farms of origin.

Visitor Reception Building

Richard Younger-Ross: To ask the hon. Member for North Devon, representing the House of Commons Commission how late the new visitor centre is; what extension of time has been granted; and what the overspend will be.

Nick Harvey: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave recently about the visitor reception building on 18 December 2007,  Official Report, column 1246W.

TRANSPORT

A2: Gravesham

Adam Holloway: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what estimate was made of the cost of constructing a bridleway to connect Down's Road and Hog Lane on the A2 road in Gravesham.

Tom Harris: No estimate was made for the cost of constructing a bridleway to connect Downs Road and Hog Lane on the A2 in Gravesham.

Airports: Security

Greg Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what discussions she has had with BAA on screening passengers passing through scanners at airport security points more quickly.

Jim Fitzpatrick: My right hon. Friend has regular discussions with industry, including the BAA, on a range of security issues. We have long recognised the need to balance security measures with the needs of the travelling public. However, the security of passengers must never be compromised.

Seafarers: Training

Alistair Carmichael: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what steps her Department has taken in response to the European Commission warning of possible court action against the UK for failing to implement European legislation on the recognition of seafarer certificates; and when her Department plans to implement the relevant legislation.

Jim Fitzpatrick: The Department regrets the delay in transposing this Directive, which amends Directive 2001/25/EC on the minimum level of training for seafarers. We are however committed to transposing the Directive into UK legislation as quickly as possible.
	The Directive will be transposed into UK legislation by a new statutory instrument. The drafting of this is at an advanced stage. A 12-week consultation on this draft will commence shortly prior to laying the final Regulations before Parliament. It is anticipated that this process will be completed and the legislation brought into force in spring 2008.

Driving: Foreigners

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if she will make it her policy to require foreign nationals to demonstrate a year's driving without offences in the UK before they are able to apply for a UK driving licence.

Jim Fitzpatrick: When applying for a first British provisional licence, or exchanging an existing foreign licence for a British equivalent, all driving licence applicants are treated equally, irrespective of their nationality. There are no plans to change this policy.
	Road traffic law is also applied equally to drivers of all nationalities. Any driver who accumulates sufficient penalty points is liable for disqualification from driving by a court.

Great Western Trains: Standards

David Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what recent assessment she has made of train  (a) punctuality and  (b) overcrowding on the Weymouth to Bristol line; and if she will make a statement.

Tom Harris: By early December, punctuality across the First Great Western (FGW) franchise stood at 82.5 per cent. We have impressed on FGW the need for this to improve. Joint action plans are in place between Network rail and FGW to help achieve this and are monitored monthly by the department.
	Measures to improve punctuality and to increase capacity on individual routes are matters for the train operator.

Network Rail: Repairs and Maintenance

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what discussions she had with Network Rail on rail network engineering projects over the Christmas period; what action she took following those discussions; and if she will make a statement.

Tom Harris: The Secretary of State met Iain Coucher, chief executive of Network Rail, on 3 January. She emphasised to him that, while the department had no intention of intervening in Network Rail's operations, the level of disruption caused to passengers over the Christmas period had been unacceptable.
	On 8 January, the Office of Rail Regulation announced that it will be conducting an investigation into Network Rail's handling of engineering works. This will focus in particular on the overruns that occurred over the Christmas period. The initial results are expected by the end of February.

Railways

Stephen Hammond: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what steps the Department has taken to ensure Network Rail is improving its safety procedures following the Waterloo derailments of 11 September and 24 October 2006.

Tom Harris: The report into these incidents by the Rail Accident Investigation Branch (RAIB) was published on its website (www.raib.gov.uk) on 18 December 2007. RAIB made 14 recommendations, mostly directed at Network Rail. It is for the Office of Rail Regulation, the health and safety regulator for Britain's railway, to consider the recommendations and Network Rail's response to the incidents and to ensure that action is taken by Network Rail where appropriate.

Railways: Crime

Si�n James: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what assessment she has made of the steps being taken by train operating companies to reduce numbers of assaults on platform and train staff.

Tom Harris: The rail industry is undertaking a range of initiatives to help reduce the numbers of assaults on its staff. This includes the setting up of the pan-industry Rail Personal Security Group to address the issue. The rail industry, though, cannot be expected to work alone in tackling staff assaults. The police, local authorities, crime and disorder reduction partnerships, and others need to play their part tooas do the public in respecting the transport environment.

Railways: Freight

Norman Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many miles of railway line are available to freight traffic only.

Tom Harris: Using Office of Rail Regulation's definition of freight-only lines Network Rail estimates that there are 585 track km of freight-only lines. This equates to 364 track miles.

Railways: Overcrowding

Brian Jenkins: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what recent assessment she has made of train  (a) punctuality and  (b) overcrowding on the line between Tamworth and London.

Tom Harris: Punctuality is reported by Network Rail and is monitored on a daily basis by West Coast Trains, London Midland and East Midlands Trains. The results are reviewed by the Department against key performance benchmarks set for each franchise.
	Officials at the Department also review timetables proposed by the train operators to ensure that they provide services compliant with their franchise commitments. It is the responsibility of train operators to manage their rolling stock resources in order to fulfil their franchise commitments and minimise crowding.

Railways: Portsmouth

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if she will pursue provisions requiring  (a) an additional train coach to the current two car unit service operating hourly and  (b) a half hourly three car unit service between Portsmouth and Cardiff in the next relevant franchise negotiations; and if she will make a statement.

Tom Harris: Responsibility for delivering a service which meets the standards in the franchise agreement is a matter for First Great Western.

Railways: Standards

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport pursuant to the answer of 7 January 2008,  Official Report, column 9W, on railways: standards, how many passengers were given the opportunity by  (a) South West Trains and  (b) her Department to read an unabridged version of the ergonomic study.

Tom Harris: Only a redacted version of the study has been made available by South West Trains to passengers. South West Trains have, however, made the full report available to Passenger Focus who have confirmed that the redacted version accurately reflects the report's findings.

Transport: Heavy Goods Vehicles

Mark Todd: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if she will require all non-UK registered heavy goods vehicles using UK roads to be equipped to the standards required of UK registered vehicles, with particular reference to identical parameters for speed limiters.

Jim Fitzpatrick: It is already a requirement under the provisions of directive 92/6/EEC as amended by directive 2002/85/EC for heavy goods vehicles (HGV) registered in any EU member state to be fitted with a speed limiter. This requires that the speed limit for an HGV should not exceed 90 kilometres per hour.
	All vehicles have to comply with minimum standards of roadworthiness irrespective of the country in which they are registered. If they do not their drivers and operators can be prosecuted and fined. The vehicle can also be prohibited from moving until necessary repairs have been carried out.

Travel Concession Authorities

Geoffrey Cox: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport in which areas of the travel concession authorities' financial expenditure her Department expects that Gershon savings can be found.

Rosie Winterton: It is for the travel concession authorities to determine where best they can make Gershon efficiency savings.
	There are a number of ways by which travel concession authorities could make such savings. Where appropriate they could move to county-wide administration of concessionary travel schemes (if they are currently managed at the district level) or could move to joint administration with other authorities. The administration of concessionary travel could also be streamlined by, for instance, issuing passes bi- or tri-annually instead of yearly, or by adopting streamlined procedures for monitoring and calculating reimbursement payments, in co-operation with bus operators.
	The Department has been working with local authorities to find ways of improving the efficiency of concessionary fares administration. An eventual move to full smart-ticketing, subject to up-front investment, would significantly reduce the scope for passenger and operator fraud, improve the collection of data needed for calculating reimbursement, and reduce the need for separate passenger surveys. To assist this process the Government are paying a grant of 31 million to ensure that bus passes for the new national concession starting April 2008 are in ITSO smartcard form.

COMMUNITIES AND LOCAL GOVERNMENT

Departmental Consultants

John McDonnell: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how much her Department spent from its  (a) running costs and  (b) programme expenditure on consultants in (i) 2004-05, (ii) 2005-06 and (iii) 2006-07.

Parmjit Dhanda: holding answer 14 January 2008
	The Department for Communities and Local Government (CLG) was created following Machinery of Government changes on 5 May 2006.
	For the 2006-07 financial year, expenditure on consultants for CLG was 72.742 million (of which 7.254 million was administration running costs, the remainder programme expenditure). Comparable figures for earlier financial years are not available and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.

Departmental Data Protection

Theresa Villiers: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government whether personal data for which her Department is responsible is  (a) stored and  (b) processed overseas; and if she will make a statement.

Parmjit Dhanda: No personal data associated with the Communities and Local Government corporate infrastructure is stored and/or processed overseas.

Fire Services: Pensions

Danny Alexander: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what estimate she has made of the effect on payments made under the Fire Service Pension Scheme from the likely change in the number of retirements due to ill health in each of the next 10 years.

Parmjit Dhanda: In 2004, the Firefighters' Pension Scheme 1992 was amended to provide that eligibility for an ill-health pension was restricted to those who were permanently disabled for the performance of the duties of their role as a firefighter, whether instead of, or in addition to, engaging in fire-fighting. This reflected changes in the duties of firefighters.
	This is resulting in a reduction of about 100 ill-health retirements per annum for fire and rescue authorities in England, giving an estimated annual saving of 1.5 million for each year group, index linked. This will reduce future liabilities by up to 21.3 million per annum.

Home Information Packs

Eric Pickles: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what representations her Department has received from organisations calling for energy performance certificates to be attached to valuations.

Yvette Cooper: We have received no recent representations calling for energy performance certificates to be linked to mortgage valuations.

Home Information Packs

Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government 
	(1)  what estimate her Department has made of the number of prospective home buyers who have made use of the home information pack.
	(2)  what estimate she has made of the number of requests by potential buyers to read home information packs.

Yvette Cooper: No such estimate has been made .

Homes and Communities Agency: Powers

Eric Pickles: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government whether agents of the Homes and Communities Agency will have the power to enter private property.

Yvette Cooper: Agents of the Homes and Communities Agency will have the power to enter land, but only for the purpose of surveying it, or estimating its value, in connection with either a proposal to acquire that land or any other land, or any claim for compensation in respect of any such acquisition. The agency must give at least 28 days notice of the intended entry.
	These powers are the same as the existing powers of the Urban Regeneration Agency established by the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 which will be dissolved once the Homes and Communities Agency is established.

Housing: Low Incomes

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what the expenditure from the public purse has been in the Stroud district on  (a) social housing and  (b) affordable housing in each year since 2002.

Iain Wright: The following table shows expenditure through the Housing Corporation's Affordable Housing Programme (AHP) between 2002-03 to 2006-07 including expenditure on major repairs and works to RSL stock in Stroud district and through Local Authority Social Housing Grant (LASHG). LASHG was abolished from 1 April 2003.
	
		
			  000 
			   Social housing  Low Cost Home Ownership (LCHO)  Major repairs and works to stocks through AHP  Total expenditure AHP  Total expenditure LASHG  Total annual expenditure 
			 2002-03 227 54 60 341 452 793 
			 2003-04 656 327 28 1,011 0 1,011 
			 2004-05 332 207 24 563 0 563 
			 2005-06 269 377 16 662 0 662 
			 2006-07 289 124 4 417 0 417

Housing: Renewable Energy

Lembit �pik: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government 
	(1)  what assessment her Department has made of the use of the Planning Policy Statement 22 viability clause in the practical application of local authority Merton rules; and what estimate she has made of the number of developments under the Merton rule that have achieved at least a 10 per cent. carbon dioxide reduction from the use of onsite renewables;
	(2)  what assessment she has made of the effect of the Merton planning rule on the uptake of micro-renewables; and if she will make a statement.

Yvette Cooper: The information required to make the assessments sought is not held centrally and could be assembled only from local authorities at a disproportionate cost. I also refer the hon. Member to the answer given to the hon. Member for Bexhill and Battle (Gregory Barker) on 29 October 2007,  Official Report, 682W. This answer explains that assessments of the type sought by the hon. Member will vary substantially according to the assumptions made on matters such as the range of developments to which local policies are applied, the expected numbers of developments to be completed, their energy demands, the extent to which the provision of installed equipment complies with the original planning permission and whether the technologies installed in practice provide the predicted savings.

Immigration: Population

Peter Lilley: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what her most recent estimate is of the number of additional new households which will be formed in the next 25 years beyond those expected in a zero net migration scenario; and what proportion of total household growth such households will represent over the same period.

Iain Wright: The latest 2004 based household projections showed annual average household growth of 223,000 per year from 2004 to 2026 in England, of which 73,000 (33 per cent.) are attributable to net migration.

Mobile Homes

Adam Afriyie: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government by what means her Department ensures that park home residents are informed of changes in legislation governing park homes.

Iain Wright: Communities and Local Government publish information on changes to park home legislation through various mediums, including press notices, on the departmental website, and direct communication with site owners, national trade bodies, national resident stakeholder groups and those local authorities in England in which park home sites are situated.

Planning: Renewable Energy

Tom Brake: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what recent discussions her Department has had with developers on the Merton Rule.

Yvette Cooper: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to the hon. Member for Bexhill and Battle (Gregory Barker) on 29 October 2007,  Official Report, 680W. This refers to the many discussions we have had with a wide range of interested stakeholders, in consulting on and developing our measures to drive higher environmental performance standards in new development. Developers are amongst the stakeholders that we have had discussions with in this context.

Racial Discrimination: EU Action

Harry Cohen: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what the Government's policy is on the EU's proposed definition of indirect discrimination in the draft Race Directive.

Parmjit Dhanda: The European Race Directive was agreed by all members of the European Union, including the UK, in June 2000. As I stated in my reply to my hon. Friend on 8 October 2007,  Official Report, column 26W, we intend to amend domestic law to meet concerns set out in a Reasoned Opinion from the European Commission that the UK has not fully transposed the directive in relation to the definition of indirect discrimination.

Second Homes: National Parks

Tim Farron: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what assessment her Department has made of the merits of a ban on extensions to second homes in national parks.

Iain Wright: I am aware that the impact of second homes is a particular concern in some areas, but it is for local authorities to adopt policies that will allow them to deal with local issues when they are determining an application for planning permission.
	Certain types of householder development can, however, proceed without the specific approval of the local planning authority. Permitted development rights are set nationally and are intended to allow householders to make relatively small-scale and uncontentious improvements to their homes.
	We announced on 30 November, following consultation, our intention to amend the current system. This is intended to ensure that what is permitted development reflects better the potential impact on others. Our proposals provide for a generally more restrictive approach to extensions in certain designated areas, including national parks, compared to non-designated areas.
	Local planning authorities also have powers to remove these rights locally by using an article 4 direction to require that an application is made and their approval sought. It will then be for them to determine whether a proposal is acceptable based on relevant planning considerations, including local policies. An article 4 direction can apply to a particular type of development and/or a specific area, but could not impose restrictions based on the ownership of a particular property. The planning system regulates the use of land and the residential status of an applicant would not be material.

Self-Employed

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many self-employed people were under contract to  (a) her Department,  (b) the Government offices for the regions and  (c) the Planning Inspectorate in the latest period for which figures are available.

Parmjit Dhanda: The information requested is not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Temporary Employment

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many days of agency work were paid for by  (a) her Department,  (b) the Government offices for the regions and (c) the Planning Inspectorate in 2007.

Parmjit Dhanda: This information is not held centrally in the format requested and could be extrapolated only at disproportionate cost.

Urban Areas: Carbon Emissions

Tony Baldry: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government 
	(1)  what consideration will be given to local development frameworks when considering planning applications for eco-towns;
	(2)  what is the proposed process for determining planning applications for eco-towns.

Yvette Cooper: Eco-towns will need full planning application. Section 38(6) of the Planning and Compulsory Purchase Act 2004 requires that the application is determined in accordance with the development plan unless material considerations indicate otherwise. Some areas will also want to consider reviews of the development plan or mini reviews of the Regional Spatial Strategy. As set out in the Eco-towns prospectus, there may be circumstances where use of the New Towns Act powers might be used.

CULTURE MEDIA AND SPORT

Departmental Official Engagements

Greg Hands: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport when he will answer Question 166020, on engagements of the Minister for Sport, tabled on 15 November 2007 by the hon. Member for Hammersmith and Fulham.

Gerry Sutcliffe: This question was answered on 14 January 2007.

GCap Media

Adam Price: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport whether Ministers in his Department received requests for a meeting with GCap Media to discuss the radio licensing regime operated by Ofcom, with particular reference to XFm during 2007.

James Purnell: holding answer 14 January 2008
	No.

Licensing

Clive Betts: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how long stakeholders were given to comment on a draft of the guidance on Expedited Licence reviews under the Violent Crime Reduction Act 2006 before that guidance was finalised.

Gerry Sutcliffe: In issuing guidance on the use of the new expedited review process, the priority was to provide advice as soon as possible to help the police tackle issues such as gun and knife crime on licensed premises. The guidance is non-statutory and non-binding and, while there was no requirement to conduct a public consultation, we were nevertheless able to give stakeholders sight of the draft and four days in which to comment.

London Bubble Theatre Company: Finance

David Evennett: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what representations he has received on the future funding proposals for the London Bubble Theatre Company by Arts Council England.

Margaret Hodge: DCMS has received seven letters on the future funding of the London Bubble Theatre Company since 18 December 2007. There are no other recorded representations.
	The Arts Council operates at arm's length from the Government and decisions about which arts organisations to fund are entirely for them. The arm's length principle ensures that the arts are not 'run' by the Government and are not subject to political interference: individual funding decisions are taken independently by people with expert knowledge of the sector.

FOREIGN AND COMMONWEALTH AFFAIRS

Afghanistan: Taliban

Mark Hoban: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what discussions he has had with officials in his Department on negotiations with the Taliban in Afghanistan; and if he will make a statement.

Kim Howells: I refer the hon. Member to my right hon. Friend the Prime Minister's statement to the House on 12 December 2007,  Official Report, columns 303-07, where he made the UK's position clear. We are not negotiating with the Taliban leadership and we do not propose to do so. However, we support President Karzai's efforts to bring disaffected Afghans into society's mainstream, providing they renounce violence and accept Afghanistan's constitution.
	In my regular discussions with officials on Afghanistan, we have covered support for Afghan-led efforts to reach out to Taliban elements who no longer want to continue their armed opposition, in order to weaken the insurgency and isolate its leadership.

India: Human Rights

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs whether a further round of the ad hoc EU-India human rights dialogue has been scheduled.

Kim Howells: A further meeting of the ad hoc EU-India human rights dialogue is planned to follow the EU-India Summit of 30 November 2007 and discussions to find a mutually convenient date are in hand. The UK will continue to work closely with the EU and India on human rights issues including through this important dialogue.

Iran: Nuclear Power

Harry Cohen: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent discussions he has had with his US counterparts on Iran's nuclear programme and the use of  (a) sanctions and  (b) other policies; and whether the impact of those policies on UK troops was discussed.

Kim Howells: My right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary discusses the issue of Iran's nuclear programme regularly with the US Secretary of State. The US is also part of the E3+3 group of countries that is leading the international community in seeking a negotiated solution to this issue and which therefore meets regularly to co-ordinate our approach. That approach is based on a generous offer to Iran should they suspend their proliferation sensitive activities and the threat of sanctions should they continue to refuse to do so. Through the E3+3, the Government and the US have played an important role in securing three United Nations Security Council Resolutions on Iran, two of which have focused on sanctions. The E3+3 are committed to a diplomatic solution to the concerns of the international community about the Iranian nuclear programme. We have not specifically discussed the impact of these policies on UK troops.

CHILDREN, SCHOOLS AND FAMILIES

Academies

David Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what his most recent estimate is of the number of academies there will be between 2007-08 and 2020-21.

Jim Knight: There are currently 83 academies open and we anticipate that 50 will open in each of the next three years, bringing the overall total of open academies to more than 230 by September 2010.
	The projected number of academies for subsequent years will be subject to the outcome of future comprehensive spending reviews.

Academies: Construction

Derek Wyatt: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what the tender process will be for the design and build of the federated academy on the Isle of Sheppey; and what steps he has taken to ensure an open and transparent process at each stage.

Jim Knight: In line with national academies policy through Building Schools for the Future (BSF), the project to develop and deliver the building programme will be managed by Kent Local Education Partnership (LEP).
	On 17 December, Kent announced the Land Securities Trillium/Northgate Information Solutions consortia as its preferred partner. This LEP will deliver all BSF and academies projects in the Gravesham, Thanet and Swale district areas. The consortia includes a design supply chain made up of the architectural practices of Fielden Clegg Bradley, Ryder HKS, Arup and K4.
	Kent's preferred bidders were appointed following a 15 month procurement competition held in accordance with relevant EU legislation and overseen by Partnership for Schools and Partnerships UK. The design element of the procurement was overseen by the Commission for Architecture and the Built Environment and Partnerships for Schools with client design advice to Kent being provided by Gensler.

Academies: Construction

Derek Wyatt: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what estimate he has made of the number of potential bidders for the design and build contract for the federated academy on the Isle of Sheppey; and how many international companies have expressed interest.

Jim Knight: Kent county council selected a preferred bidder for its first Local Education Partnership on 17 December 2007 to deliver, among other schools, the proposed Sheppey Academy. This followed a 15 month procurement competition held in line with relevant EU legislation. A total of six consortia made bids for the project and all six consortia included substantial companies with multi-national portfolios of work and substantial experience in the education sector.

Academies: Curriculum

David Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what freedoms accrue to academies as a consequence of his policy that they do not have to follow national curriculum disapplication procedures; and if he will make a statement.

Jim Knight: The headteacher of maintained schools is able to disapply the national curriculum, for individual pupils:
	who have a statement of special educational needs, under section 92 of the of the Education Act 2002;
	for a temporary period, through regulations under section 93 of the Act;
	However, he must obtain consent from the Secretary of State to disapply the national curriculum for groups of pupils or the school community, for a specified period:
	to enable curriculum development or experimentation, under section 90 of the Act.
	The current model funding agreement states that academies must follow the national programmes of study for all pupils in English, science, maths and ICT. However, this is not required if in the opinion of the Principal it is inappropriate to follow the national curriculum because of the pupil's ability or attainment.
	This allows academies the freedom to use different curriculums where pupils have already surpassed the national curriculum key Stage. It also allows academies to disapply the national curriculum if the ability of the pupil is low and they would benefit from a different approach. The latter is similar to the ability of maintained schools to disapply if the pupil has a statement of SEN.

Academies: Sponsorship

David Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families which academies  (a) are and  (b) will be sponsored or co-sponsored by universities; and if he will make a statement.

Jim Knight: Those academies open, in implementation or in feasibility which are sponsored or co-sponsored by universities are listed in the following chart.
	
		
			  Academy Name  Project Status  Project Title  Sponsor/co-sponsoring university  Opening date 
			 The City Academy Bristol Open Bristol 1 University of the West of England 1 September 2003 
			 North Liverpool Academy Nottingham Open Liverpool 1 -North University of Liverpool 1 September 2006 
			 University Samworth Academy Implementation Nottingham 3 University Of Nottingham 1 September 2009 
			 Merchants' Academy Withywood Implementation Bristol 2 University of Bristol 1 September 2008 
			 Red House Academy Implementation Sunderland 3 University of Sunderland 1 September 2009 
			 Eastside Academy (New School) Feasibility Birmingham 2 Birmingham City University (formerly UCE) 1 September 2011 
			 Brit Legacy School South Area Academy (name TBC) Feasibility Cheshire 2 University of Chester 1 September 2009 
			 Swanswell Academy Feasibility Coventry 2 Coventry University Sheffield 1 September 2010 
			 TBC Feasibility Derbyshire 1 Hallam University 1 September 2011 
			 The Newton Academy Feasibility St Helens 1 Liverpool Hope University 1 September 2011 
			 The Oxford Academy Feasibility Oxfordshire 2 Oxford Brookes University 1 September 2008 
			 City of London Academy Islington Feasibility Islington 2 City University, London 1 September 2008 
			 St Alban's Academy Feasibility Birmingham 8 Aston University 1 September 2010 
			 Harborne Hill Academy Feasibility Birmingham 7 University of Birmingham 1 September 2010

Building Schools for the Future Programme

David Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families if he will publish the timetable for Phase II of Building Schools for Future.

Jim Knight: Building Schools for the Future aims to renew all secondary schools in England where there is need, in 15 waves of investment which started from 2005-06. We have now announced the specific projects and authorities in the first six waves of Building Schools for the Future. Our delivery agent, Partnerships for Schools, is this week hosting the launch event for wave six, where school building work can start from 2010-11.
	We aim this year to consult on how we manage waves seven onwards of the programme, building on the lessons we have learned from the early waves. We have already announced that we will give all authorities with projects in these waves the opportunity to revise their expressions of interest in the programme: our guidance on this will be informed by the consultation. We aim to announce which authorities will be in wave seven by the end of this year, which can access Building Schools for the Future funding from 2011-12. The exact timetable for this programme is, of course, subject to future public spending decisions.

Children in Care: Pupil Referral Units

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what percentage of children referred to pupil referral units as a result of their behaviour were looked after children in the latest period for which figures are available.

Beverley Hughes: The requested information is not collected centrally.

Children: Day Care

Andrew Dismore: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families 
	(1)  what new children's centres he plans to open in Hendon; when and where each is expected to open; what the original timetable was for opening such centres; what  (a) capital and  (b) revenue funding his Department expects to provide for each over the next three financial years; how many places each such centre will offer; and if he will make a statement;
	(2)  what children's centres operate in Hendon; what  (a) capital and  (b) revenue funding his Department has provided to each such centre in the last three financial years; how many places are offered by each such centre; and if he will make a statement.

Beverley Hughes: Local authorities are responsible for the planning and implementation of Sure Start Children's Centres in their areas. There are currently four designated children's centres in the London borough of Barnet, two of which are located in the Hendon constituency. There are a further nine planned for designation in 2008, four of which will be located in the Hendon constituency. We have given Barnet an indicative number of a further nine centres to be delivered by 2010 to reach remaining children under five in the final phase of the roll out of children's centres. Revenue and capital allocations for Barnet children's centres for each of the next three years and last three years are given in the following tables. It is the authority's responsibility to determine allocations between individual centres. Sure Start Children's Centres do not offer a set number of places. Each centre is expected to offer services to around 800 children under five and their families in the local community although this figure may be higher in areas of high population density. Centres in the 30 per cent. most disadvantaged areas offer childcare to some children in their area. Information is not held centrally about the number of child care places in each centre.
	
		
			   
			   Children's Centre revenue  Sure Start, Early Years and child care capital allocation( 1) 
			 2008-09 3,651,335 2,342,190 
			 2009-10 4,912,063 3,199,744 
			 2010-11 5,983,537 2,520,657 
			 (1) Includes capital funding streams for children's centres and early years and child care quality and access. Local authorities have flexibility to decide how much to spend on each element. 
		
	
	
		
			   
			   Children's Centre revenue  General Sure Start Grant capital allocation 
			 2005-06 238,558 (1)317,666 
			 2006-07 537,361 (2)2,337,313 
			 2007-08 2,176,374 4,278,485 
			 (1) One off two-year capital allocation for 2004-06 covering children's centres and sustainability of child care. (2) From 2006, capital funding streams for children's centres, sustainability and extended schools capital were merged into the General Sure Start Grant capital allocation. Local authorities were given flexibility to decide how much to spend on each element.

Children: Speech Impaired

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families whether improved joint working across agencies for services to children with speech, language and communication difficulties will be included in the statement of values for integrated working with children and young people due to be published in 2008.

Jim Knight: No. The statement of values for integrated working describes principles and values for all children's practitioners to follow in order to improve the outcomes for children and families. As such, it would not be appropriate for it to include specific areas of expertise.

Children: Speech Impaired

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what guidance his Department will provide to children's trusts and their partners to ensure that by 2010 they have in place arrangements to provide identification and early intervention for children who need additional help; whether this guidance will include information on identifying and supporting children with communication difficulties; and if he will make a statement.

Jim Knight: In 2005 the Department issued Statutory Guidance on Inter-agency Co-operation to Improve the Wellbeing of Children: Children's Trusts. This describes the duties placed on local authorities and other key partners to co-operate to improve the five outcomes for children and young peoplebe healthy, stay safe, enjoy and achieve, making a positive contribution and achieve economic wellbeing. The guidance sets out the features of co-operation through children's trusts and provides a strategic framework within which all children's services within a local area will operate.
	In addition, the Department provides a range of guidance to service providers on supporting children with additional needs. This includes the statutory guidance in the Special Educational Needs Code of Practice which makes clear schools' and local authorities' responsibilities to identify and make provision for children with SEN, including those with communication difficulties, and the importance of early intervention.

Departmental Pay

Sarah Teather: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families pursuant to the answer of 27 November 2007,  Official Report, column 380W, on departmental pay, how many of those earning over 100,000 were employed  (a) as special advisers and  (b) in a political role in each year since 1997.

Kevin Brennan: Since 2003, the Government have published on an annual basis the number of special advisers in each pay band. For the most recent information, I refer the hon. Member to the statement made by my right hon. Friend, the Prime Minister on 22 November 2007,  Official Report, columns 147-51WS.
	Information on the number and cost of special advisers prior to 2003 was provided at regular intervals and this information will be available in the Library of the House.

Departmental Redundancy

Mark Hoban: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what the cost was of redundancies in his Department in the 12 months preceding  (a) 30 June 2004,  (b) 30 June 2005 and  (c) 30 June 2006.

Kevin Brennan: The Department was formed as part of the machinery of government changes announced on 28 June 2007 and therefore there were no redundancies in my Department in the periods described.

Education

Nick Gibb: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what the four independent settings are that are the main providers of a child's education but not currently registered with either Ofsted or his Department.

Jim Knight: The four unregistered settings are as follows:
	a small tuition group which provides a curriculum based on Christian principles for children aged 4 to 11 and operates for five hours a day for up to 20 children;
	a support centre for home educators which provides academic lessons for 18 hours from Monday to Thursday and optional recreational based activities for three hours on Fridays;
	an establishment providing 16 hours of education from Monday to Friday for three to six-year-olds as part of a home education programme where parents also provide five hours 15 minutes a week;
	a centre educating both pupils placed by local authorities and others. Pupils attend for a total of 20 hours from Monday to Friday.

Education: Parents

Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what steps the Government plan to take to engage parents further in the education of their children.

Beverley Hughes: As children do better at school if parents, fathers as well as mothers are engaged, the Department has set out in the Children's Plan (published December 2007) plans to help mothers and fathers get more involved in their children's learning. Specifically we intend to:
	Provide every child from the moment they arrive in secondary school with a personal tutor who will co-ordinate support for the child throughout their time in the school.
	Encourage all schools to regularly seek the views of parents, enhancing the role of Parents Councils.
	Continue to provide support for parents who find it more difficult to get involved, by expanding the availability of Parent Support Advisors to 1015 schools in every local authority.
	Offer all parents regular, up to date information on their child's attendance, behaviour and progress in learning.
	In addition, my Department will continue to provide free book packs for parents of all children in England at nine months, 18 months, three years and in Reception, which will be reinforced by the 2008 National Year of Reading and more family learning programmes.

Educational Institutions

Rudi Vis: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families 
	(1)  what definition he uses of institution as used in section 76(1)b of the Education and Skills Bill;
	(2)  how many institutions, other than independent schools, he expects to be registered on the new Independent Educational Institutions register as set out in the Education and Skills Bill;
	(3)  what the reasons are for the decision in the Education and Skills Bill to treat part-time educational institutions differently from other forms of education otherwise than at school provision.

Jim Knight: Part 4, Chapter 1, clause 76(1)b of the Education and Skills Bill provides a definition of an institution other than an independent school.
	Parents have a duty to ensure their children receive full-time education. Most parents choose full-time education in a school, with a minority choosing to educate otherwise than at school. Where parents delegate a substantial part of their children's education to others, we believe that the state has responsibility for ensuring that children have appropriate learning opportunities and learn in a safe and secure environment. The Bill places education where children are educated without their parents being present on the same regulatory footing as all other settings which provide the major part of a child's education.
	I refer my hon. Friend to my response given to PQ 176977, which describes four institutions that we anticipate will need to register under current proposals. Some responses to our public consultation suggested that there were more institutions that would need to register, but they provided insufficient detail for us to make a precise estimate of the total.

GCE A-Level

Nick Gibb: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many pupils were entered for a GCE A-level in  (a) accounting,  (b) art and design,  (c) biology,  (d) business studies,  (e) chemistry,  (f) communication studies,  (g) dance,  (h) design and technology,  (i) engineering,  (j) English literature,  (k) drama and theatre studies,  (l) French,  (m) geography,  (n) German,  (o) health and social care,  (p) history,  (q) home economics,  (r) information and communication technology,  (s) leisure studies,  (t) mathematics,  (u) further mathematics,  (v) media studies,  (w) performance studies,  (x) performing arts,  (y) physical education,  (z) physics and (aa) travel and tourism in (i) mainstream schools in the maintained sector, (ii) city technology colleges, colleges for the technology of the arts and academies and (iii) schools in the independent sector in each year since 1997.

Jim Knight: The information has been placed in Library.
	Figures for VCE qualifications have been given where GCE-A level is not applicable.

GCE A-Levels

John Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many people are studying  (a) sports studies,  (b) PE,  (c) photography,  (d) performing arts,  (e) performance studies,  (f) music technology,  (g) media studies,  (h) leisure studies,  (i) technology,  (j) information and communication,  (k) home economics,  (l) health and social care,  (m) film studies,  (n) drama and theatre studies,  (o) design and technology,  (p) dance,  (q) communication studies,  (r) business studies,  (s) art and design,  (t) accountancy and  (u) travel and tourism at (i) AS-Level and (ii) second year A-Level; and how many people completed the relevant A-Level in each of the last 10 years.

Jim Knight: The information required to answer part (iii) has been placed in Library.
	Figures for VCE qualifications have been given where GCE-A level is not applicable.

General Certificate of Secondary Education: Standards

David Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families for what reasons the Government target for GCSE performance is measured against the standard of performance at a C grade or better; and if he will make a statement.

Jim Knight: GCSEs are unique qualifications because they span two levels of the National Qualifications Framework: grades D-G are at level 1, while grades at C and above represent level 2. Level 2 qualifications recognise the ability to gain a good knowledge and understanding of a subject area of work or study, and to perform varied tasks with some guidance or supervision. Learning at this level involves building knowledge and/or skills in relation to an area of work or a subject area and is appropriate for many job roles.
	The learning and skills attained at level 2 are therefore appropriate for many job roles and represent the progression route to A Levels and other higher qualifications. Government targets reflect our determination to see the majority of young people reaching the standard which enables them to make such progression.

Geronimo Communications

David Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what payments have been made by Geronimo Communications to  (a) his Department and  (b) officials in his Department in each year since 1999; and if he will make a statement.

Kevin Brennan: holding answer 10 January 2008
	There are no records of any payments received from Geronimo Communications and paid into departmental bank accounts.

Geronimo Communications

David Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families which officials in his Department have managed the contract with Geronimo Communications since 1 January 2000; and if he will make a statement.

Kevin Brennan: Geronimo Communications have had a PR framework agreement with the Department since 2000, awarded as a result of three separate European tenders. The European tenders resulted in a number of framework agreements awarded to several PR suppliers to cover the anticipated PR requirements of the Department over the framework life. Framework agreements rather than contracts are used where there is a regular demand for a particular service over a period of time. Users then 'call off' from the frameworks by letting contracts that relate to a specific project.
	There is split responsibility between the corporate contract management of the framework agreements and contract management at individual job level. The Media Procurement Unit, part of the Department's Commercial Group within Corporate Service Directorate run the tender process, award and corporate contract manage the framework agreements. The duties performed by the Media Procurement Unit with a supplier include dissemination of supplier information to users, corporate communications, supplier forums and surgeries, arbitration and processing of framework variations.
	Communications Directorate is the main user of the PR framework agreements, 'calling-off' from a framework agreement for a project. Those users will then 'contract manage' an individual project, selecting a supplier, setting the specification and monitoring budgets, quality and outputs.
	To list each individual contract manager that has placed work with Geronimo Communications since 2000 would create disproportionate costs.

Gifted Children

David Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families 
	(1)  what proportion of children identified as gifted and talented achieved level 7 in  (a) English and  (b) science at Key Stage 3 in the last three years;
	(2)  what proportion of children identified as gifted and talented achieved level 8 in mathematics at Key Stage 3 in the last three years.

Jim Knight: The proportion of students identified as gifted and talented in maintained schools who achieved level 7 in English and science in 2006 was 30.0 per cent. and 44.3 per cent. respectively. The corresponding figures for 2007 were 25.3 per cent. and 45.7 per cent.
	The proportion of students identified as gifted and talented in maintained schools who achieved level 8 in mathematics in 2006 was 28.1 per cent. The corresponding figure for 2007 was 28.8 per cent..
	National data on gifted and talented pupils has only been collected since 2006.
	The gifted and talented students not achieving this benchmark will almost certainly include many who have been identified for their talent in, for example, creative arts or sports.

Gifted Children: Free School Meals

David Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what proportion of children identified as gifted and talented are entitled to free school meals.

Jim Knight: The available information is given in the table. The Department advises schools to ensure that their gifted and talented populations are broadly representative of their wider school populations, in respect of gender, ethnic and socio-economic background. The new gifted and talented strand of the City Challenges will include work to improve schools' capacity to identify underachieving gifted and talented pupils from disadvantaged backgrounds.
	
		
			  Maintained primary and secondary schools( 1) : number and percentage of gifted and talented pupils by their free school meal (FSM) eligibility( 2, 3) , summer 2007, England 
			   Primary Schools  Secondary Schools 
			   Number of pupils  Percentage of gifted and talented group( 4)  Percentage of cohort (incidence)( 5)  Number of pupils  Percentage of gifted and talented group( 4)  Percentage of cohort (incidence)( 5) 
			 Known to be eligible for FSM 34,420 11.4 5.3 29,350 6.9 7.1 
			 Other pupils 268,430 88.6 7.7 396,480 93.1 14.0 
			 Total 302,850 100.0 7.3 425,830 100.0 13.1 
			 (1) Includes middle schools as deemed. (2) Headcount of pupils. (3) Includes dually registered pupils. (4) The number of gifted and talented pupils by their characteristics expressed as a percentage of the total number of gifted and talented pupils. (5) The number of gifted and talented pupils by their characteristics expressed as a percentage of the total number of pupils in the same cohort.  Note: Totals may not appear to equal the sum of the component parts because numbers have been rounded to the nearest 10.  Source: School Census.

Gifted Children: GCE A-Levels

David Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what proportion of children identified as gifted and talented achieved three As at A-Level in the last three years.

Jim Knight: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave to the hon. Member for Havant (Mr. Willetts) on 9 January 2008,  Official Report, column 650W.

Gifted Children: General Certificate of Secondary Education

David Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what proportion of children identified as gifted and talented did not achieve 5 A*-Cs, including English and mathematics, at GCSE in the last three years.

Jim Knight: The proportion of students identified as gifted and talented in maintained schools who did not achieve 5 A*-C grades at GCSE including English and mathematics in 2006 was 15.1 per cent. The corresponding figure for 2007 is 14.8 per cent. National data on gifted and talented pupils has only been collected since 2006.
	The gifted and talented students not achieving this benchmark will almost certainly include many who have been identified for their talent in, for example, creative arts or sports.

Headteachers: Hampshire

Sandra Gidley: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what proportion of head teachers in  (a) Southampton,  (b) Romsey and  (c) Hampshire are within (i) one year, (ii) two years, (iii) three years, (iv) five years and (v) 10 years of standard pension age.

Jim Knight: The information requested is not available at local authority or constituency level.

Islington Green Academy: Finance

David Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families which trust has donated money to the Islington Green Academy via the City University; and if he will make a statement.

Jim Knight: City University London is a joint sponsor, together with the City of London Corporation, of the City of London Academy, Islington which is expected to replace Islington Green School from September 2008. The university has raised funds from four sources to provide sponsorship: the Cass Foundation, the Saddlers Company, the Kitchin Fund and a philanthropic benefactor who has expressed a wish to remain anonymous. The university and Department are respecting that wish. The donations are being made to the university, not to the academy and the donors will have no say in the running of the academy. This anonymous donor has been subject to a due diligence check by the university.
	The rules relating to charitable foundations generally, not just academies, mean that not all donations need to be made public. It is commonplace for charities to receive donations from benefactors who do not wish publicity. An Academy Trust, as a charitable company, has to record its income in published annual accounts, and has to include a note with accounts on any amounts received as a charitable donation.
	Sponsors of academies cannot themselves act anonymously and must be named in the Funding Agreement.

Languages: Schools

Andrew Dismore: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what plans he has to extend modern foreign language teaching in  (a) primary and  (b) secondary schools; whether he plans to make the study of a modern foreign language at school compulsory; and if he will make a statement.

Jim Knight: The Children's Plan, published in December 2007, confirmed that the primary curriculum will be reviewed, including introducing languages as a compulsory subject. This takes forward the recommendation in Lord Dearing's Languages Review that languages should become a compulsory part of the primary curriculum, and builds on the existing entitlement for all Key Stage 2 pupils to learn a language in class time by 2010. Progress so far is good and already over 70 per cent. of primary schools are offering languages in class time. We are extending language teaching in primary schools through: a teacher training programme in a primary languages specialism, which has so far trained nearly 3,000 teachers, with thousands more to be trained over the next few years; increased funding for local authorities to support the delivery of primary languages; and access for teachers to sources of support for use in the classroom.
	At secondary level, languages are compulsory at Key Stage 3 (ages 11-14). The new secondary curriculum, which will be taught from September 2008, extends the range of languages pupils can study at this level by relaxing the requirement that schools first teach a working language of the European Union so that they can offer any major world or European language.
	As a result of the continued decline in take up of languages at GCSE following their removal from the compulsory Key Stage 4 curriculum (ages 14-16) in 2004, Lord Dearing's Languages Review looked at how best to increase participation in language learning. He did not recommend making languages compulsory at Key Stage 4 because he felt that a 'one size fits all' approach was not the best way to motivate learners. Instead, he recommended a package of measures to extend language learning post-14 which we are now implementing. These include: two new performance indicators in the Achievement and Attainment Tables from 2008 to measure attainment and participation in languages; a more engaging secondary curriculum; more and better support for language teachers; a major communications campaign to promote the benefits of language teaching to pupils, parents and the school workforce; and the Open School for Languages, a major web-based initiative which will offer innovative approaches to the learning of languages.

London Academy Edgware

Andrew Dismore: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families where the London Academy is ranked amongst schools for results at each key stage; and what the Academy's value-added measures were in the latest period for which figures are available.

Jim Knight: The following tables provide data on:-
	(a) Where the London Academy is positioned amongst all maintained, mainstream schools (including CTCs and Academies) for 2007 (Amended) Revised KS4 results and 2006 (Amended) Revised KS3 results.
	(b) The 2007 Revised CVA measures for the London Academy.
	 (a) Ranks amongst schools
	
		
			  2007 Revised KS4 
			  London Academy  Result  Position out of 3044 schools( 1, 2) 
			 Average uncapped point score 35.5 1913 
			 Percentage 5A*-C 54.6 1908 
			 Percentage 5A*-C inc. English and Maths 39.1 1847 
		
	
	
		
			  2006 Revised KS3 
			  London Academy  Result  Position out of 3109 schools( 1,2) 
			 Average point score 32.2 2568 
			 (1) All positions based on unrounded results. A rank of 1 being the highest school/measure. (2) All maintained mainstream schools including CTCs and Academies whose results were published in the 2006 or 2007 Achievement and Attainment tables. 
		
	
	 (b) 2007 Revised CVA measures for the London Academy
	
		
			 KS2-KS4 CVA 1023.9 
			 KS3-KS4 CVA 1012.2 
			  Source: 2007 Amended KS4 and 2006 Amended KS3 school level attainment files

Nurseries

Maria Miller: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families for how many weeks on average three and four-year-old children received the free nursery entitlement in  (a) 2004-05,  (b) 2005-06,  (c) 2006-07 and  (d) 2007-08; how many children (i) were eligible for and (ii) took up the entitlement in each of those years; how much was provided in the dedicated schools grant for the entitlement in each of those years; what the average staffing cost per child of the entitlement was in each of those years; what the average expenditure per child was on the entitlement in each local authority in each of those years; and if he will make a statement.

Beverley Hughes: Information is not available in the form requested.
	Since April 2004 all three and four-year-olds have been entitled to a free part-time early education place for 12.5 hours per week for 38 weeks of the year. From 2010, this offer will be extended from 12.5 to 15 hours per week for 38 weeks of the year.
	The following table provides information on the number of three and four-year-olds taking up or benefiting from early education places for the years 2004-07.
	
		
			  Number of three and four-year-olds taking up or benefiting from early education places( 1,2,3)  by type of provider, England, 2004-07position in January each year (2007 data as at 22 May) 
			   2004  2005  2006  2007 
			 Private and voluntary providers(4) 
			 Number of children taking up early education places (5)445,300 (5)432,800 (5)429,400 (5)446,900 
			 Percentage of population(6) 39 39 38 39 
			 Number of children benefiting from some free early education (7)388,600 (7)396,700 (8)401,800 (8)420,700 
			 Percentage of population(6) 34 35 36 37 
			  
			 Independent schools(9) 
			 Number of children taking up early education places 54,700 52,000 50,100 50,500 
			 Percentage of population(6) 5 5 4 4 
			 Number of children benefiting from some free early education (7)38,400 (7)39,200 (8)37,900 (8)37,900 
			 Percentage of population(6) 3 3 3 3 
			  
			 Maintained nursery and primary schools 
			 Number of children benefiting from some free early education 676,500 663,800 657,700 663,800 
			 Percentage of population(6) 59 59 59 58 
			  
			 Nursery schools and nursery classes in primary schools 
			 Number of children benefiting from some free early education 320,200 312,300 312,500 318,900 
			 Percentage of population(6) 28 28 28 28 
			  
			 Infant classes in primary schools(10) 
			 Number of children benefiting from some free early education 356,300 351,500 345,200 344,900 
			 Percentage of population(6) 31 31 31 30 
			  
			 Special schools(11,12) 
			 Number of children benefiting from some free early education 4,100 3,700 3,600 3,700 
			 Percentage of population(6) 
			  
			 All providers 
			 Number of children taking up early education places (5)1,180,500 (5)1,152,400 (5)1,140,800 (5)1,165,000 
			 Percentage of population(6) 103 103 102 101 
			 Number of children benefiting from some free early education (7)1,107,500 (7)1,103,400 (8)1,101,100 (8)1,126,100 
			 Percentage of population(6) 97 98 98 98 
			 (1) Headcount of children aged three and four at 31 December in the previous calendar year, rounded to the nearest hundred. (2) Numbers of three and four year olds in schools may include some two year olds. (3) Any child attending more than one provider may have been counted twice. (4) Includes some local authority day nurseries registered to receive funding. (5) Scaled up from the data as returned by providers to all providers of early years education. (6) Number of places taken up by three and four year olds expressed as a percentage of the three and four year old population. (7) Providers returned the number of three and four year olds for which they had received or expected to receive funding. (8) Local authorities returned the number of three and four-year-olds for which they expected to receive funding. (9) Includes direct grant nursery schools. (10) Includes reception and other classes not designated as nursery classes. (11) Includes general hospital schools. (12) Excludes pupils w ho are also registered elsewhere.  Notes: 1. Bounding of components may cause discrepancies in totals. 2. '' = less than 0.5 per cent. 
		
	
	The latest figures on early education places for three and four-year-olds in England were published in Statistical First Release (SFR) 19/2007 'Provision for children under five years of age in England: January 2007', available on my Department's website at:
	www.dcsf.gov.uk/rsgateway/.
	The Dedicated Schools Grant (DSG) was only introduced in 2006-07. We do not separately identify the amount of funding in the DSG for early years. It is up to the local authorities to decide how to distribute their overall allocation.
	In 2004-05 and 2005-06 LAs received funding to provide free nursery education for three and four-year-olds through the under-fives sub-block of their education formula spending share (EPS). In 2004-05 3,208 million was funded through the under-fives block of the education formula spending (EFS) and in 2005-06 3,456 million was funded. EFS was not ringfenced, so funding for educationincluding the notional under five's fundingcould be spent on other sectors and vice versa.

Parenting Orders

Nick Gibb: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many parenting contracts have been issued in each year since 2004.

Kevin Brennan: The information is set out in the table.
	The Department has collected data on local authorities' use of parenting contacts (in cases of irregular school attendance and exclusion) since September 2004.
	
		
			  Parenting contracts offered by local authorities and accepted by parents 
			  School academic year  Irregular attendance  Exclusion 
			 2004-05 5,717 410 
			 2005-06 10,207 1,898 
			 2006-07 13,278 2,535 
			 Total 29,202 4,843 
		
	
	Additional data on parental responsibility measures are provided at local authority level and are published at:
	www.dfes.gov.uk/schoolattendance/otherinitiatives/Data.cfm

Pre-School Education: Greater London

Andrew Dismore: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many children in  (a) Hendon and  (b) Barnet aged (i) three and (ii) four are benefiting from the free early years programme; what plans he has to expand this provision in (A) Hendon and (B) Barnet; how much has been awarded to Barnet as part of the dedicated schools grant to support the costs in increasing early years education for (1) 2007-08 and (2) 2008-09; and how many registered childcare places for under eights there (x) are and (y) were in 1997 in (X) Hendon and (Y) Barnet; and if he will make a statement.

Beverley Hughes: 3,500 three-year-olds and 3,800 four-year-olds in Barnet benefited from the free early education entitlement in 2007. Numbers broken down to constituency level are not available.
	At present all three and four year olds are entitled to 12.5 hours of free early education per week for 38 weeks a year. That will rise to 15 hours a week for 38 weeks by 2010. Barnet's most disadvantaged three and four-year-olds will become eligible for the extended offer in 2009 and all children in the Borough in 2010.
	Dedicated Schools Grant (DSG) allocations do not separately identify the amount of funding for early years. Local authorities are responsible for the distribution of their overall allocation in the light of local priorities. The final 2007-08 dedicated schools grant (DSG) allocation for Barnet was 185.129 million. The indicative DSG allocation for 2008-09 is 196.451 million. (This figure will be finalised in spring 2008 using actual January pupil counts. Additional funding to support the increase of the free entitlement to 15 hours is being made available through the standards fund. The indicative allocations for 2009-10 and 2010-1, in Barnet are 484,000 and 2,154,000,
	respectively.
	In 1997 there were 7,900 (1)registered childcare places for under eights in Barnet.
	There were 9,000 (2)registered childcare places for children under eight years old in Barnet, in (3)2007.
	(1)( )Data Source: Children's Daycare Facilities Survey
	(2)( )Data Source: Ofsted.
	(3)( )Figures for 1997 and 2007 quoted above are not comparable as they are derived from different data sources.

Pre-School Education: Southern Region

Maria Miller: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families with reference to the answer of 10 July 2007,  Official Report, column 1404W, on pre-school education: southern region, if he will publish local authorities' estimates of funding allocated to early years.

Beverley Hughes: The Department published local authorities' estimates of the average per pupil amount allocated by local authorities to maintained providers and to private, voluntary and independent sector providers for delivery of the free entitlement early years provision in August 2007. The Free Entitlement to Early Years Provision Table for 2007-08 can be found on the DCSF website at:
	http://www.dfes.gov.uk/localauthorities/section52/subPage.cfm?action=section52.defaultID=87

Private Education: Registration

Nick Gibb: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families on what dates changes were made to the wording of his Department's consultation document on the transfer of responsibility for the registration of independent schools and the regulation of independent and non-maintained special schools to Ofsted following its initial publication; whether any such changes were made to electronic versions of the consultation document only; and if he will make a statement.

Jim Knight: I can confirm that minor changes were made to the electronic versions only of the consultation document on 31 July and 5 September 2007, to provide greater clarity, following feedback from consultees. These changes did not materially affect the proposals on which we consulted.

Pupils: Allergies

Stewart Jackson: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families whether he plans to issue guidance to nursery schools on the provision of spring-activated automatic injection device pre-loaded with adrenaline for staff supervising children with allergies; and if he will make a statement.

Beverley Hughes: The 'National Standards for under 8s day care and childminding' covers the provision and administration of medication to children in early years settings. The standards will be subsumed and replaced by the statutory framework for the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS), which will underpin the provision of child care from birth to five, when it comes into effect this September. The EYFS sets out specific legal requirements and statutory guidance for providers, including the provision of necessary training for staff on administering prescription medicines requiring technical/medical knowledge.

Pupils: Drugs

Humfrey Malins: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families if he will introduce compulsory and random drug tests in all state schools for pupils over 15 years old.

Jim Knight: This Department has no plans to introduce compulsory and random drug testing in schools.
	Decisions about whether to employ drug testing rest entirely at school level. The Department's guidance, Drugs: Guidance for Schools (DFES 2004) offers guidance on voluntary drug testing in schools and makes clear that such an approach should be clearly stated in the school's drug policy, which should be developed in consultation with pupils, parents, staff, governors and the whole school community.

Qualifications: Hendon

Andrew Dismore: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what percentage of GCSE students in schools in Hendon constituency achieved five or more A* to C grades inclusive in  (a) 1997 and  (b) 2007; what the value added score for each school in Hendon constituency was in 2007; what the average point score at A level was (i) for each school in Hendon constituency (A) per candidate and (B) per exam entry, (ii) for all schools in Hendon constituency and (iii) nationally in 2007; what the percentage of (1) A and B and (2) A to E grades achieved at each school in Hendon constituency was in 2007; and if he will make a statement.

Jim Knight: The figures to answer part  (a) and  (b) are as follows:
	
		
			   1997  2007 
			 Percentage of pupils who achieved 5+A*-C 49.4 69.8 
			 Percentage of pupils who achieved 5+A*-G 88.6 95.0 
			  Notes: 1. Figures include GCSEs and equivalents. 2. The 1997 figures are for pupils aged 15 at the beginning of the academic year, i.e. 31 August. 3. The 2007 revised figures are for pupils at the end of key stage 4. 
		
	
	Information required to answer the rest of the question can be found in the achievement and attainment tables that have been placed in the Library.

School Meals: Finance

Andrew Dismore: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what financial support his Department provides to schools in Hendon to improve school food; and if he will make a statement.

Kevin Brennan: The Government have invested 220 million over the three years 2005-06 to 2007-08 to assist authorities and schools in improving school lunches and other school food. Barnet local authority received over 770,000 of that funding, with a further 473,000 going to schools. Schools, including those in Hendon, received a lump sum of 1,070 per primary school and 1,500 per secondary school, with an additional 50p per pupil.
	Further funding of 240 million over the three years from 2008-09 to 2010-11 is also being made available to local authorities, to help manage the direct costs of providing a school lunch. For 2008-09, Barnet local authority will receive over 480,000.

Schools: Buildings

David Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what progress his Department has made on bringing around 3,500 secondary school buildings up to 21st century standards; and if he will make a statement.

Jim Knight: In 1997, investment in school buildings was under 700 million a year and schools had suffered from many years of under investment, with a large backlog of condition and suitability needs. This year, Government funding for investment in school buildings and facilities is 6.4 billion and it will rise to over 8 billion a year by 2010-11a seven-fold increase in real terms under this Government.
	Since 1997, every school in England has benefited from this growth in funding. Since 2000, every school has been given money directly to invest in its own priorities. By 2010-11, a typical secondary school, for example, will have received over 900,000 to improve its buildings and facilities.
	In the 10 years to 2007, there were 162 new secondary schools built, and a further 26 new or significantly refurbished academy buildings. Additionally, over 6,600 science laboratories were built or refurbished, and over 430 sixth form blocks built or refurbished, Many other secondary schools benefited from new general classrooms, new kitchens or dining rooms, improved sports facilities and the replacement of decayed temporary accommodation with permanent.
	Ensuring that all secondary school have 21st century facilities is now driven by Building Schools for the Future, which with the academies programme aims to rebuild or renew all secondary schools in England where there is need in 15 waves of investment.
	There are now 72 local authorities in the first six waves of the programme, supported in developing their projects by our delivery agent, Partnerships for Schools. The first all-new school in this programme was opened in September in Bristol. Additionally, 39 authorities not yet in Building Schools for the Future are being offered One School Pathfinder funding to renew their neediest secondary school. There are a further 106 academies buildings in development outside of the BSF programme. In all, almost 1,000 schools are now in planning or procurement through Building Schools for the Future, Academies, or as One School Pathfinders. Further, we will provide 8 million of funding by 2010-11, to each of 76 authorities not yet in Building Schools for the Future, to improve diploma provision for 14-19 year olds and to improve facilities for young people with special educational needs.
	Full details of our school improvement programme are in my written statement of 10 October 2007.

Schools: Hendon

Andrew Dismore: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what the average  (a) level of school attendance and  (b) number of exclusions per pupil was in Hendon schools in the latest period for which figures are available; and if he will make a statement.

Kevin Brennan: The latest available information for absence relates to autumn term 2006 and spring term 2007 and is shown in the table.
	The latest available information for exclusions relates to the academic year 2005/06 and is shown in the table.
	
		
			  Primary and secondary schools( 1) Number of permanent and fixed period exclusions 2005/06Hendon parliamentary constituency 
			   Permanent exclusions( 2)  Fixed period exclusions 
			   Number of exclusions  Percentage of the school population( 3)  Number of exclusions  Percentage of the school population( 4) 
			 Primary schools (5) (5) n/a n/a 
			 Secondary schools(1) 7 0.08 8.36 9.85 
			 n/a= Not available (1) Includes middle schools as deemed. Secondary data include figures for one academy. Exclude special schools and independent schools (2) Number of permanent exclusions as reported by schools. (3) The number of permanent exclusions expressed as a percentage of the number (headcount) of all pupils (excluding dually registered pupils) in January 2006. (4) The number of fixed period exclusions expressed as a percentage of the number (headcount) of all pupils (excluding dually registered pupils) in January 2006. (5) Less than three or a rate based on less than three.  Source: School Census 
		
	
	
		
			  Primary and secondary schools( 1)  pupil absenceautumn term 2006 and spring term 2007Hendon parliamentary constituency 
			  Percentage of half days missed( 2) 
			   Number of pupil enrolments( 3)  Authorised absence  Unauthorised absence  Overall absence 
			 Primary schools 8,018 4.60 0.86 5.46 
			 Secondary schools(1) 6,848 5.77 1.22 6.99 
			 (1) Includes middle schools as deemed. Secondary data include figures for one academy. Exclude special schools and independent schools. (2) The number of sessions missed due to authorised/unauthorised/overall absence expressed as a percentage of the total number of possible sessions. (3) Number of pupils enrolments in schools between 1 September 2006 and 9 April 2007. Includes pupils on the roll of the school for at least one session who are aged between five and 15, excluding boarders. Some pupils may be counted more than once (if they moved schools during the school year or are registered at more than one school.  Source: School Census

Schools: Manpower

Andrew Dismore: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many full-time equivalent  (a) teaching assistants,  (b) support staff and  (c) teachers were employed in schools in Hendon in the latest period for which figures are available.

Jim Knight: The following table shows the full-time equivalent number of teaching assistants, support staff and teachers employed in local authority maintained schools in Hendon in January 2007. This is the latest information available.
	
		
			  Full-time equivalent teaching assistants, support staff and teachers in local authority maintained schools in Hendon constituency, January 2007 
			   Hendon constituency 
			 Teaching assistants 420 
			 Support staff(1) 650 
			 Teachers  
			 Qualified 910 
			 Unqualified 120 
			 (1) Includes teaching assistants.  Note: Figures are rounded to the nearest 10.  Source:  School Census

Social Services: Parents

Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what steps the Government has taken to support parents during the first year of a child's life.

Beverley Hughes: This Government have made significant improvements to the support for parents of young children. We have introduced paid paternity leave, doubled maternity pay and are increasing maternity leave to a year, some of which can be transferred to fathers. We have introduced a right to request flexible working for parents, which five million parents have exercised. Six in 10 mothers now work flexibly.
	We are establishing a nationwide network of Sure Start children's centres offering access to high quality integrated early years services, including child and family health services, antenatal and post-natal services, parental outreach and family support services, support for children and parents with special needs and early learning. There are currently over 1,900 children's centres offering services to over 1.2 million children under five and their families. By 2010, there will be 3,500, one for every community.
	We have recently announced 30 million additional funding to 2011 to extend the health-led parenting support projects which offer a structured programme for parents with the most intense needs of home visits by trained nurses during pregnancy and the first two years.

Special Educational Needs: Norfolk

Ian Gibson: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many and what proportion of children attending schools in Norfolk have special educational needs without a statement; how many counties in England have  (a) fewer and  (b) more such children attending schools within their boundaries; and if he will make a statement.

Jim Knight: Figures from the school census show that, in January 2007, Norfolk local authority had 12,276 primary school pupils with special educational needs without statements, representing 19.4 per cent. of the total number of primary school pupils, including middle schools deemed as primary. In percentage terms, there are 102 local authorities with fewer such children attending schools within their boundaries, 43 local authorities with more and 4 local authorities with the same.
	In secondary schools, Norfolk local authority had 8,085 pupils with special educational needs without statements, representing 17.2 per cent. of the total of secondary school pupils, including middle schools deemed as secondary. In percentage terms, there are 89 local authorities with fewer such children attending schools within their boundaries, 57 local authorities with more and one local authority with the same. Note that the local authorities of City of London and Isles of Scilly do not have any secondary school pupils.

Special Educational Needs: Barnet

Andrew Dismore: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what  (a) percentage and  (b) number of students in Barnet have special educational needs but are without statements; where this ranks Barnet local education authority (LEA) in relation to other LEAs in (i) London and (ii) England; and if he will make a statement.

Jim Knight: Figures from the School Census show that, in January 2007, Barnet local authority had 4,902 primary school pupils with special educational needs without statements, representing 18.9 per cent. of the total number of primary school pupils, including middle schools deemed as primary. In percentage terms this ranks Barnet local authority as 18th highest out of 33 London local authorities and 97th highest out of all 150 local authorities in England,
	In secondary schools, Barnet local authority had 2,966 pupils with special educational needs without statements, representing 15.2 per cent. of the total of secondary school pupils, including middle schools deemed as secondary. In percentage terms this ranks Barnet local authority as 7th highest out of 33 London local authorities and 62nd highest out of all 150 local authorities in England.

Specialist Schools

Ian Gibson: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what schools in Norfolk have specialist status; what the specialty is in each case; how much each such school has received in relation to the specialist status for the latest period for which figures are available; and what applications for specialist status have been received from schools in Norfolk.

Jim Knight: The following table shows the information requested. There are 52 maintained secondary schools in Norfolk, of which 45 have specialist status including one special school with an SEN specialism. There were seven applications from schools within Norfolk in the latest specialist status application round of autumn 2007. The Department expects to announce the outcome of this round towards the end of January. The Government remain committed to the Specialist Schools programme as a means of raising attainment and achievement for all secondary aged pupils.
	
		
			   
			  School name  Specialism  High performing second specialism  Recurrent funding 2007-08  Capital Grant 2007-08 
			 Acle High School Science  97,782  
			 Alderman Peel High School Sports  23,478 100,000 
			 Archbishop Sancroft High School Science  33,228  
			 Attleborough High School Maths and Computing  123,324  
			 Aylsham High School Business and Enterprise  118,035  
			 Broadland High School Maths and Computing  90,300  
			 Caister High School Arts  83,592  
			 City of Norwich School Technology Arts 229,446  
			 Cliff Park High School Sports  114,552  
			 Costessey High School Science  128,742  
			 Cromer High School and Language College Language  116,172  
			 Diss High School Humanities  129,000  
			 Downham Market High SchoolTechnology College Technology  188,082  
			 Earlham High School Sports  98,943  
			 Eaton Hall School, Norwich Special Educational Needs (Behaviour Emotional and Social)  35,000 100,000 
			 Fakenham High School and College Technology Vocational 262,281  
			 Flegg High School Business and Enterprise  100,620  
			 Framingham Earl High School Sports  100,362  
			 Great Yarmouth (VA) High School Technology  101,265  
			 Heartsease High School Engineering  52,632  
			 Hellesdon High School Technology  129,000  
			 Hethersett High School and Science College Science  78,303  
			 Hobart High School Science  99,975  
			 King Edward VII School Sports  143,577  
			 Litcham High School Science Language, Sports 223,788  
			 Long Stratton High School Maths and Computing  83,979  
			 Lynn Grove VA High School Technology  116,229  
			 Marshland High School Science  104,490  
			 Neatherd High School Language  159,000  
			 North Walsham High School Arts  108,489  
			 Northgate High School Arts and Humanities  129,000  
			 Notre Dame High School, Norwich Language Science 236,577  
			 Oriel High School Maths and Computing  47,034 100,000 
			 Reepham High School Science Vocational 192,297  
			 Sheringham High School and Sixth Form Centre Arts  99,717  
			 Smithdon High School Maths and Computing  129,000  
			 Springwood High School Arts  165,249  
			 Sprowston High School Arts  149,253  
			 St. Clement's High School Humanities  80,754  
			 Taverham High School Sports  111,069  
			 The Blyth-Jex School Business and Enterprise  114,939  
			 The Park High School Technology  112,488  
			 Thorpe St. Andrew School Sports Technology 291,768  
			 Wayland Community High School Technology  91,203  
			 Wymondham College Technology Language 219,000  
			 Wymondham High School Arts  153,252

Specialist Schools and Academies Trust National Conference

David Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families pursuant to the answer of 10 December 2007,  Official Report, column 270W, on Specialist Schools and Academies Trust National Conference, what parliamentary business he participated in on 28 November 2007.

Edward Balls: As recorded in  Hansard,  Official Report, I voted in several divisions on 28 November 2007.

Sports: Hendon

Andrew Dismore: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what steps he is taking to promote sport in Hendon schools; what funding is being provided to school sport partnerships for schools in Hendon for 2008-09; what percentage of students in Hendon are participating in sport for two hours or more per week; how many hours of sport each week for pupils he expects to achieve in Hendon schools; and if he will make a statement.

Kevin Brennan: The Department for Children, Schools and Families and the Department for Culture, Media and Sport are jointly implementing the national PE, School Sport and Club Links strategy, which involves every maintained school in England. The strategy is driving up the quality and quantity of PE and school sport.
	All schools in Hendon are now in a school sport partnership. Some are part of the Barnet South Partnership, which will receive 504,027 in 2008-09. The proportion of pupils in the partnership who are participating in at least two hours of high quality PE and school sport a week is 86 per cent.
	The other schools are in the St. James' Partnership, which will receive 414,579 in 2008-09. The proportion of pupils in the partnership who are participating in at least two hours high quality PE and school sport a week is 67 per cent.
	Our target is for every partnership to have at least 85 per cent. of pupils participating in at least two hours of high quality PE and school sport a week by 2008. Both partnerships will also benefit from extra funding for competition managers, coaches and top up swimming lessons.
	With our delivery partners, we are providing enhanced support for those partnerships that need help to improve their provision.

St. Joseph's College Stoke on Trent

Nick Gibb: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families if he will make a statement on the future of  (a) St. Joseph's College in Stoke-on-Trent and  (b) St. George's School in Salford.

Jim Knight: It is for the local authority to consider any questions about the future of any maintained school, working with the local diocese or trustees in the case of voluntary aided schools.
	I understand that Stoke-on-Trent council have been carrying out a consultation on the possible closure of St. Joseph's, and Salford council have consulted on the possible closure of St. George's, in the context of their Building Schools for the Future projects. In the case of St. Joseph's the consultation included plans to replace the school with a new Roman Catholic (RC) High School on the site of the closing school. The local authorities are now considering the views expressed. If they publish statutory proposals to close the schools, they would be the decision maker following a six week period for comments and objections, but there would be a right of appeal to the schools adjudicator by the local diocesan authorities, the Learning and Skills Council and the governing bodies and trustees of each school.
	Proposals for the new RC school to replace St. Joseph's in Stoke-on-Trent could only be proposed by the trustees, or local RC diocese, and they would have to seek the Secretary of State's consent before publishing proposals for the new school without running a school competition.

Teachers: Discrimination

Nick Gibb: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what assessment he has made of the age discrimination implications of the new qualification requirements for early years foundation stage teachers which will come into force in September 2008.

Beverley Hughes: In developing the early years foundation stage (EYFS), which will come into effect this September, the Government have carefully examined all existing legislation (including the age discrimination regulations). The Government are satisfied that the EYFS is lawful while ensuring that we have provided a robust framework for high quality learning, development and care provision for children between birth to five.

Teaching Methods

Daniel Kawczynski: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families 
	(1)  what guidance his Department has provided to secondary schools on the teaching of low ability readers by the method of synthetic phonics;
	(2)  what funding is available for schools to purchase  (a) course materials and  (b) teacher training in synthetic phonics;
	(3)  whether it is his policy that every trainee primary teacher should be trained in synthetic phonics;
	(4)  what proportion of teacher training establishments are training primary school teachers in the use of synthetic phonics;
	(5)  what guidance his Department has provided to primary schools in England on the teaching of reading by synthetic phonics;
	(6)  what proportion of primary schools in England are teaching reading using synthetic phonics.

Jim Knight: Improving standards of literacy at all key stages is one of the Government's top priorities. Following Sir Jim Rose's review of the teaching of early reading, we have provided a wealth of guidance on the systematic teaching of phonics. We have done this through the renewal of the primary framework for literacy which puts phonics at the heart of teaching literacy; through the provision of training to all primary schools as part of the Communication Language and Literacy Development (CLLD) programme; and through the publication of Letters and Sounds, a high quality phonics teaching document sent free to all primary schools and local authorities last year.
	Although this guidance is targeted specifically at early years settings and primary schools, secondary schools are able to access freely all the guidance we provide. For secondary schools, the Secondary National Strategy has produced a specific teaching unit on phonics as part of the literacy progress units designed to help secondary schools in helping pupils struggling with reading to catch up. However, we have concentrated the main thrust of our guidance on early years settings and primary schools where it is of prime importance that firm foundations in the teaching of early reading are laid.
	We do not gather information on the proportion of primary schools in England which use phonics to teach reading. Phonic knowledge is a part of the KS1 national curriculum, so all schools are required to teach it.
	It is this Department's intention that every trainee teacher should be trained in the use of high quality, systematic phonics teaching. We have asked the Training and Development Agency to ensure that all teacher training establishments give sufficient attention to phonics teaching and we will continue to work with the national strategies to ensure that teachers and support staff receive the appropriate continuing professional development.
	We do not provide funding specifically targeted at the teaching of phonics. We believe that schools are best placed to target their funding to suit local needs. All training and materials produced through the national strategies are provided free-of-charge to schools.

Teenage Pregnancy Unit

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families 
	(1)  what budget has been allocated to the Teenage Pregnancy Unit for the next three financial years;
	(2)  what projects are being undertaken by the Teenage Pregnancy Unit;
	(3)  how many civil servants are working for the Teenage Pregnancy Unit; and what their job descriptions are.

Beverley Hughes: The funding available to support implementation of local teenage pregnancy strategies is 27.5 million for each of the next three years (2008/09 to 2010/11). A further 5.8 million is retained by the Teenage Pregnancy Unit to fund work that is managed centrally. The 'running costs' for the Teenage Pregnancy Unit itself in 2007/08 are 280,000. Decisions on funding for TPU for future years have not yet been agreed.
	The main tasks of the Teenage Pregnancy Unit include:
	supporting the delivery of local strategies through: performance management and sharing best practice;
	policy development; and
	mainstreaming teenage pregnancy work within wider Government strategies.
	There are 3.5 civil servants working in the Teenage Pregnancy Unit, covering the following responsibilities:
	National programme manager
	National policy manager
	National support manager
	Administrative support (0.5)

HOME DEPARTMENT

Arrests: Alcoholic Drinks

David Ruffley: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many  (a) arrests and  (b) prosecutions for (i) being drunk and disorderly, (ii) being found drunk on a highway, public place or on licensed premises and (iii) being drunk in or when entering a designated sports event there have been in each police force area in England and Wales in each year since 1997.

Vernon Coaker: Information on the number of defendants proceeded against for the offences requested are provided in tables 1 to 3.
	In addition to court proceedings, the offences of being found drunk and disorderly and being drunk in a highway, public place or on licensed premises can attract a penalty notice for disorder from 2004. Data on the number of these are provided in table 4.
	The arrests collection undertaken by the Ministry of Justice provides data on persons arrested for recorded crime (notifiable offences), by age group, gender, ethnicity, and main offence group, ie violence against the person, sexual offences, robbery, burglary etc.
	From the aggregated data collected centrally on arrest, we are unable to identify specific offences.
	
		
			  Table 1: Number of defendants proceeded against at magistrates courts for selected alcohol offences, by police force area. England and Wales, 1997-2006( 1,2) 
			  Offence: Being found drunk in a highway or other Public place whether a building or not, or a licensed premises 
			  Statute: Criminal Justice Act 1967 S.91 
			  Police force area  1997  1998  1999  2000  2001  2002  2003  2004  2005  2006 
			 Avon and Somerset 61 63 92 83 72 84 84 91 95 81 
			 Bedfordshire 53 153 94 52 31 20 47 28 30 16 
			 Cambridgeshire 36 31 37 44 51 51 71 47 55 57 
			 Cheshire 69 63 48 34 18 23 24 13 3 15 
			 City of London 5 1 1 6 1 0 0 2 0 0 
			 Cleveland 4 13 0 2 3 2 3 3 2 5 
			 Cumbria 38 36 22 13 17 15 8 20 17 18 
			 Derbyshire 38 42 46 64 60 52 40 11 6 4 
			 Devon and Cornwall 284 300 331 249 215 228 185 106 77 81 
			 Dorset 12 14 18 28 12 12 15 11 4 0 
			 Durham 23 39 38 22 45 20 6 7 12 12 
			 Essex 227 209 169 137 114 52 12 13 3 9 
			 Gloucestershire 53 90 56 34 35 34 20 14 14 16 
			 Greater Manchester 7 14 9 3 8 4 10 4 3 1 
			 Hampshire 346 481 346 232 164 127 71 57 55 21 
			 Hertfordshire 20 47 65 42 31 18 18 17 14 0 
			 Humberside 11 12 14 6 3 4 5 2 1 0 
			 Kent 155 145 145 148 142 154 153 123 57 47 
			 Lancashire 213 213 188 248 182 177 69 35 43 14 
			 Leicestershire 0 1 6 4 0 2 0 0 0 1 
			 Lincolnshire 34 49 26 25 11 15 10 9 2 3 
			 Merseyside 44 46 38 34 39 29 18 8 5 4 
			 Metropolitan Police 253 286 244 160 304 185 141 113 113 91 
			 Norfolk 65 65 68 67 58 57 72 40 27 12 
			 North Yorkshire 81 94 85 133 136 143 120 53 35 29 
			 Northamptonshire 6 6 6 7 1 9 3 4 3 4 
			 Northumbria 21 28 41 23 10 12 9 17 22 32 
			 Nottinghamshire 1 8 6 3 10 9 12 0 2 1 
			 South Yorkshire 18 12 21 32 13 8 5 13 5 2 
			 Staffordshire(3) 81 70 41 ** 17 15 34 40 42 38 
			 Suffolk 108 81 97 72 51 61 57 66 27 29 
			 Surrey 91 97 108 119 120 81 86 93 89 74 
			 Sussex 226 226 130 81 129 102 88 44 56 82 
			 Thames Valley 214 246 207 173 144 123 127 97 51 50 
			 Warwickshire 8 98 17 9 7 7 6 1 1 0 
			 West Mercia 97 64 73 19 22 9 4 7 6 8 
			 West Midlands 61 51 29 19 11 7 22 16 42 51 
			 West Yorkshire 46 103 67 70 26 34 90 75 35 40 
			 Wiltshire 68 73 65 48 59 52 48 64 79 71 
			
			 Dyfed-Powys 92 152 134 138 77 72 78 62 37 66 
			 Gwent 21 25 21 25 38 50 25 11 7 2 
			 North Wales 17 13 14 7 3 9 7 1 3 7 
			 South Wales 113 241 250 251 228 206 218 206 212 76 
			
			 Total 3,421 4,101 3,513 2,966 2,718 2,374 2,121 1,644 1,392 1,170 
			 (1) These data are on the principal offence basis. (2) Every effort is made to ensure that the figures presented are accurate and complete. However, it is important to note that these data have been extracted from large administrative data systems generated by the courts and police forces. As a consequence, care should be taken to ensure data collection processes and their inevitable limitations are taken into account when those data are used. (3) Staffordshire police force were only able to submit sample data for defendants proceeded against and convicted in the magistrates courts for the year 2000. Although sufficient to estimate higher orders of data, these data are not robust enough at a detailed level and have been excluded from the table. 
		
	
	
		
			  Table 2: Number of defendants proceeded against at magistrates courts for selected alcohol offences, by police force area. England and Wales, 1997-2006( 1,2) 
			  Offence:  Drunk in, or when entering, a designated sports event 
			  Statute:  Sporting Events (Control of Alcohol, etc.) Act 1985 Section 2(2) 
			  Police force area  1997  1998  1999  2000  2001  2002  2003  2004  2005  2006 
			 Avon and Somerset 6 23 6 5 3 3 9 10 3 2 
			 Bedfordshire 15 5 11 9 4 2 2 3 4 4 
			 Cambridgeshire 9 6 5 5 8 4 2 4 2 0 
			 Cheshire 4 3 2 3 1 2 5 4 0 1 
			 City of London 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 
			 Cleveland 9 7 26 4 15 26 14 13 20 23 
			 Cumbria 4 1 0 0 0 2 1 1 0 1 
			 Derbyshire 2 5 0 5 3 11 4 15 8 2 
			 Devon and Cornwall 2 1 2 2 1 1 2 3 0 6 
			 Dorset 6 13 3 11 12 8 3 1 3 0 
			 Durham 0 0 1 1 3 0 0 2 5 0 
			 Essex 1 0 0 1 0 0 0 4 3 8 
			 Gloucestershire 0 0 3 7 6 7 1 0 0 0 
			 Greater Manchester 9 28 9 13 7 13 11 14 28 32 
			 Hampshire 41 15 8 16 16 9 19 22 14 11 
			 Hertfordshire 0 1 1 0 2 1 0 2 1 3 
			 Humberside 0 0 5 3 5 1 2 1 3 3 
			 Kent 2 1 10 3 3 0 0 1 0 3 
			 Lancashire 61 33 24 26 26 23 16 11 22 43 
			 Leicestershire 0 2 2 3 0 0 4 2 4 3 
			 Lincolnshire 0 1 0 0 0 2 1 2 1 0 
			 Merseyside 3 9 13 10 9 8 7 7 7 2 
			 Metropolitan Police 198 191 115 73 37 61 72 59 17 30 
			 Norfolk 12 14 7 1 11 10 7 8 21 4 
			 North Yorkshire 6 2 3 15 13 4 3 1 2 0 
			 Northamptonshire 0 0 1 0 0 0 1 1 0 0 
			 Northumbria 102 43 26 20 44 42 44 16 21 24 
			 Nottinghamshire 40 34 42 19 26 20 13 28 13 17 
			 South Yorkshire 48 20 27 23 41 31 17 30 26 40 
			 Staffordshire(3) 3 1 0 ** 0 5 2 5 6 2 
			 Suffolk 5 5 3 2 7 5 6 29 4 11 
			 Surrey 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 
			 Sussex 1 0 1 3 0 0 0 0 1 0 
			 Thames Valley 15 21 6 3 9 3 2 4 5 2 
			 Warwickshire 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 
			 West Mercia 2 0 1 2 1 0 1 1 0 0 
			 West Midlands 59 52 25 15 55 85 72 84 103 199 
			 West Yorkshire 32 33 30 53 68 47 25 34 49 46 
			 Wiltshire 12 22 2 18 11 1 1 5 6 3 
			
			 Dyfed-Powys 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 
			 Gwent 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 
			 North Wales 2 3 7 5 0 2 4 1 0 0 
			 South Wales 2 6 3 2 5 0 3 3 7 3 
			
			 Total 713 601 430 381 452 439 376 432 409 528 
			 (1) These data are on the principal offence basis (2) Every effort is made to ensure that the figures presented are accurate and complete. However, it is important to note that these data have been extracted from large administrative data systems generated by the courts and police forces. As a consequence, care should be taken to ensure data collection processes and their inevitable limitations are taken into account when those data are used. (3) Staffordshire police force were only able to submit sample data for defendants proceeded against and convicted in the magistrates courts for the year 2000. Although sufficient to estimate higher orders of data, these data are not robust enough at a detailed level and have been excluded from the table. 
		
	
	
		
			  Table 3: Number of defendants proceeded against at magistrates courts for selected alcohol offences, by police force area. England and Wales, 1997-2006( 1,2) 
			  Offence :  Being guilty while drunk of disorderly behaviour 
			  Statute:  Criminal Justice Act 1967 S.91 
			  Police force area  1997  1998  1999  2000  2001  2002  2003  2004  2005  2006 
			 Avon and Somerset 361 374 383 363 399 408 427 371 226 187 
			 Bedfordshire 166 314 220 186 187 197 219 136 84 80 
			 Cambridgeshire 122 144 159 148 151 154 189 167 169 132 
			 Cheshire 586 714 652 590 563 648 652 505 84 111 
			 City of London 26 31 54 43 44 53 70 53 51 61 
			 Cleveland 774 707 708 684 621 630 715 631 205 95 
			 Cumbria 808 812 802 521 558 514 525 471 328 322 
			 Derbyshire 294 286 231 254 292 357 425 342 211 228 
			 Devon and Cornwall 888 771 709 704 817 895 672 477 365 480 
			 Dorset 272 390 343 406 469 551 520 166 98 87 
			 Durham 406 504 491 538 563 541 603 406 378 286 
			 Essex 515 490 553 584 513 409 194 204 183 255 
			 Gloucestershire 147 200 153 158 164 180 201 139 62 44 
			 Greater Manchester 1,415 1,307 1,206 1,215 1,067 1,005 965 505 260 183 
			 Hampshire 1,270 1,393 1,306 1,133 1,072 1,117 977 590 455 251 
			 Hertfordshire 296 337 388 381 406 508 449 365 255 79 
			 Humberside 250 225 255 234 247 213 213 127 163 138 
			 Kent 560 720 865 900 911 928 1,107 1,118 532 436 
			 Lancashire 1,618 1,673 1,827 2,165 2,366 2,210 2,180 908 615 560 
			 Leicestershire 27 27 37 24 26 26 19 18 12 16 
			 Lincolnshire 478 624 584 458 506 528 556 484 70 60 
			 Merseyside 2,967 2,940 2,151 1,979 1,926 2,118 2,039 1,348 692 765 
			 Metropolitan Police 1,449 1,550 1,440 1,219 1,494 2,464 2,466 1,182 908 1,104 
			 Norfolk 108 114 115 131 146 151 183 94 58 51 
			 North Yorkshire 342 382 411 459 482 452 512 195 202 212 
			 Northamptonshire 26 24 21 29 33 29 25 32 41 31 
			 Northumbria 3,122 3,567 3,548 3,859 3,516 3,587 3,944 3,939 4,532 4,352 
			 Nottinghamshire 563 570 526 482 529 507 501 261 224 262 
			 South Yorkshire 1,186 968 1,148 1,264 1,248 1,271 1,497 1,204 551 544 
			 Staffordshire(3) 320 305 247 ** 215 251 343 223 209 160 
			 Suffolk 269 212 213 228 267 333 357 337 217 201 
			 Surrey 208 208 280 412 473 477 439 289 247 121 
			 Sussex 522 512 398 512 631 733 801 474 266 371 
			 Thames Valley 1,086 1,305 1,161 979 997 979 1,090 895 282 232 
			 Warwickshire 309 666 286 228 195 125 162 111 27 35 
			 West Mercia 654 574 561 488 543 455 413 483 516 437 
			 West Midlands 1,102 846 522 472 437 463 307 531 373 797 
			 West Yorkshire 2,655 2,764 3,097 2,809 2,101 2,071 2,260 714 687 1,384 
			 Wiltshire 370 426 267 275 262 284 426 290 147 105 
			
			 Dyfed-Powys 200 198 153 145 162 173 223 214 162 122 
			 Gwent 748 532 420 360 308 273 207 263 238 209 
			 North Wales 824 1,006 949 799 839 669 545 436 220 222 
			 South Wales 1,582 1,583 1,212 1,162 998 802 725 903 737 335 
			
			 Total 31,891 33,295 31,052 29,980 29,744 30,739 31,343 22,601 16,342 16,143 
			 (1) These data are on the principal offence basis. (2) Every effort is made to ensure that the figures presented are accurate and complete. However, it is important to note that these data have been extracted from large administrative data systems generated by the courts and police forces. As a consequence, care should be taken to ensure data collection processes and their inevitable limitations are taken into account when those data are used. (3) Staffordshire police force were only able to submit sample data for defendants proceeded against and convicted in the magistrates courts for the year 2000. Although sufficient to estimate higher orders of data, these data are not robust enough at a detailed level and have been excluded from the table. 
		
	
	
		
			  Table 4: Number of PNDs issued for selected alcohol offences, England and Wales 2004-06( 1,2) 
			   Drunk and disorderly  Drunk in a highway etc. 
			  Police force  2004  2005  2006  2004  2005  2006 
			 Avon and Somerset 176 286 179 22 92 64 
			 Bedfordshire 144 265 290 13 43 14 
			 British Transport police ** ** 575 ** ** 26 
			 Cambridgeshire 189 357 284 34 90 77 
			 Cheshire 409 190 125 13 13 4 
			 Cleveland 368 722 296 2   
			 Cumbria 403 657 692 7 21 25 
			 Derbyshire 372 558 671 9 13 9 
			 Devon and Cornwall 988 1,519 1,883 158 195 241 
			 Dorset 82 127 170 2 2 9 
			 Durham 441 762 518 17 21 24 
			 Essex 714 634 871 24 38 34 
			 Gloucestershire 282 320 194 10 31 22 
			 Greater Manchester 333 491 322 31 82 26 
			 Hampshire 1,074 967 546 73 79 32 
			 Hertfordshire 208 319 218 9 30 17 
			 Humberside 604 679 1,003 1 5 13 
			 Kent 498 1,514 1,806 45 89 113 
			 Lancashire 2,869 4,651 4,889 79 105 106 
			 Leicestershire 67 79 75 6 12 2 
			 Lincolnshire 174 71 98 7 7  
			 London, City of 32 101 199 3 12 5 
			 Merseyside 2,728 3,619 3,295 20 55 58 
			 Metropolitan 4,081 3,058 3,195 1,159 930 609 
			 Norfolk 79 93 89 34 56 25 
			 North Yorkshire 373 697 885 106 113 133 
			 Northamptonshire 246 618 536 12 39 26 
			 Northumbria 126 1,426 3,974 3 9 11 
			 Nottinghamshire 477 661 511 8 9 11 
			 South Yorkshire 1,590 2,261 2,430 10 9 10 
			 Staffordshire 452 380 346 52 74 87 
			 Suffolk 267 377 350 35 27 26 
			 Surrey 80 278 358 25 123 172 
			 Sussex 1,029 1,419 1,473 65 143 126 
			 Thames Valley 396 258 246 7 74 37 
			 Warwickshire 250 123 58 8 4 2 
			 West Mercia 141 423 694 10 27 25 
			 West Midlands 1,580 1,664 2,561 100 94 104 
			 West Yorkshire 923 1,961 3,753 105 93 77 
			 Wiltshire 346 311 331 63 71 73 
			
			 Dyfed-Powys 183 315 289 37 103 98 
			 Gwent 127 222 273 22 9 12 
			 North Wales 639 1,173 1,258 14 33 49 
			 South Wales 69 432 747 37 63 78 
			
			 England and Wales 26,609 37,038 43,556 2,497 3,138 2,712 
			 ** British Transport police began issuing PNDs in 2006 (1) Every effort is made to ensure that the figures presented are accurate and complete. However, it is important to note that these data have been extracted from large administrative data systems generated by police forces. As a consequence, care should be taken to ensure data collection processes and their inevitable limitations are taken into account when those data are used. (2) Offence is a Notifiable offence included within OBTJ figures

Asylum

James Clappison: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many asylum claimants have received leave to remain as a result of grant of  (a) asylum,  (b) humanitarian protection,  (c) discretionary leave and  (d) family indefinite leave to remain since 1 April 2003, broken down by nationality; and how many dependants have received leave to remain in each of these categories and nationalities.

Liam Byrne: h olding answer 10 December 2007
	 : The requested information is contained in the tables placed in the House Library. Information on dependants granted under the Family ILR exercise is not available and could be obtained only by examination of individual case records at disproportionate cost.
	Information on asylum decisions is published quarterly and annually. Copies of these publications are available from the Library of the House and from the Home Office Research, Development and Statistics website at:
	http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/rds/immigration1.html

Commonwealth

James Clappison: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what estimate she has made of the number of Commonwealth citizens resident in the UK in  (a) 1997 and  (b) at the most recent date for which an estimate is available; what estimate she has made of the number of Commonwealth citizens registered to vote in the UK; which Commonwealth countries have reciprocal rights for voting with the UK; and what checks are carried out on the immigration status of applicants for electoral registration.

Angela Eagle: I have been asked to reply.
	The information requested falls within the responsibility of the National Statistician, who has been asked to reply.
	 Letter from Colin Mowl, dated 16 January 2008:
	The National Statistician has been asked to reply to your question on what estimate has been made of the number of Commonwealth citizens resident in the UK in  (a) 1997 and  (b) at the most recent date for which an estimate is available; what estimate has been made of the number of commonwealth citizens registered to vote in the UK; which Commonwealth countries have reciprocal rights for voting in the UK; and what checks are carried out on the immigration status of applicants for electoral registration. I am replying in her absence.
	(177394)
	In 1997, there were an estimated 695,000 Commonwealth citizens resident in the UK. In 2006, the corresponding estimate was 1,112,000. These estimates are based on Labour Force Survey data and, as with any sample survey data, are subject to margins of error.
	With respect to Commonwealth citizens registered to vote, data separately identifying British, Irish, or Commonwealth citizens are not collected centrally; these citizens are grouped together on local authority electoral returns. Therefore we are unable to produce data on voter registration separately for Commonwealth citizens.
	With respect to which Commonwealth countries have reciprocal rights for voting in the UK, the Ministry of Justice advise that this information is not held centrally. In respect of the UK, the Representation of the People Act 1983 provides that all Commonwealth citizens who are lawfully resident here are entitled to vote in parliamentary and local elections. Decisions about the voting rights of Commonwealth, including British, citizens resident in other Commonwealth countries are for the individual countries concerned.
	With respect to checks on immigration status, the Ministry of Justice advise that all electors are required to state their nationality on the canvass form when registering to vote. Furthermore, electoral registers are available for public inspection and anyone who believes that an ineligible person has been included may object and notify the Electoral Registration Officer (ERO) who may then make further inquiries as to the eligibility of that individual.
	The Electoral Administration Act strengthened this process by:
	allowing any individual to object to another person's registration details at any time;
	allowing an ERO to initiate and conduct a review of a person's registration at any time;
	creating a new criminal offence of supplying false information or failing to supply information to the electoral registration officer at any time; and
	giving the police more time to carry out investigations into electoral fraud (they may apply to court to have the normal one year limit for bringing prosecutions increased to two years, so long as there has been no undue delay in the investigation).

Crime

Eric Pickles: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what estimate her Department has made of the number of cases of criminal damage which occurred after 9:00 pm in each of the last two years.

Vernon Coaker: The British Crime Survey asks at what time of day victims of criminal damage believe such incidents happened. The question uses broad time bands and it is not possible to estimate the number of cases that occurred after 9 pm. The following table shows the available information for the last two survey years.
	
		
			  Proportion of criminal damage incidents by time of day, 2005-06 and 2006-07, BCS 
			   2005-06  2006-07 
			   Number  Percentage  Number  Percentage 
			 Morning/Afternoon(1)  24  23 
			 Morning  5  4 
			 Afternoon  14  12 
			 Morning/Afternoon (unsure which)  6  7 
			 Evening/Night(2)  76  77 
			 Evening  36  36 
			 Night  21  24 
			 Evening/Night (unsure which)  18  17 
			 Unweighted base 3,779  3,865  
			 (1) Morning is from 6 am to noon. Afternoon is from noon to 6 pm. (2) Evening is from 6 pm to midnight. Night is midnight to 6 am.

Crime: Victims

David Ruffley: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many victims of crime there were in each of the last 25 years, broken down by  (a) police and  (b) local authority area.

Vernon Coaker: The information requested is not available.
	Police recorded crime statistics are available at police force and local authority area level but they provide counts of the number of offences rather than number of victims. The British Crime Survey can provide estimate of the number of victims at national level but not at police force or local authority area level.

Criminal Records Bureau: Telephones

Mark Harper: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the Criminal Records Bureau policy is on the diversion of office telephone lines to personal telephones.

Meg Hillier: The Criminal Records Bureau does not operate a policy on the diversion of office telephone lines to personal telephones.

Deportation: China and Nigeria

Humfrey Malins: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many  (a) Nigerian and  (b) Chinese nationals are in prison in the UK; and in respect of how many such people deportation was judicially recommended.

David Hanson: I refer the hon. Gentleman to my answer on 19 November 2007,  Official Report, column 516W. At the end of September 2007 there were  (a) 1,098 Nigerian and  (b) 349 Chinese national prisoners held in all prisons in England and Wales. Figures for the numbers of foreign national prisoners held in prisons in England and Wales are published every quarter. The latest figures are available in Population in CustodySeptember 2007, available at the website:
	http://www.justice.gov.uk/publications/populationincustody.htm
	where the aforementioned figures can be found.
	Information on the number of these nationals for whom deportation has been judicially recommended is not collated centrally and is not available.
	Comparable information for Scotland and Northern Ireland is the responsibility of the Scottish Executive and the Northern Ireland Prison Service.
	These figures have been drawn from administrative IT systems, which, as with any large scale recording system, are subject to possible errors with data entry and processing.

Drugs: Misuse

Humfrey Malins: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if she will estimate the cost to the criminal justice system associated with the criminal activity of problematic drug users in 2007-08.

Vernon Coaker: The Home Office is not planning to estimate the cost to the criminal justice system associated with the criminal activity of problematic drug users in 2007-08.
	A Home Office Research Study, The Economic and Social Costs of Class A Drug Use in England and Wales 2003/04, provided an estimate of the criminal justice costs associated with problem drug users' criminal activity. The total cost to the criminal justice system was estimated to be around 4 billion for the year 2003-04.
	 Source:
	The Economic and Social Costs of Class A Drug Use in England and Wales, 2003/04, in Measuring different aspects of problem drug use: methodological developments Chapter 3, Table 3.3, OLR 16/06. This report is available on the Home Office RDS website at: http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/rds/pdfs06/rdsolr1606.pdf

Drugs: Voluntary Organisations

Humfrey Malins: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if she will outsource drug work currently undertaken by statutory authorities to private charities; and if she will make a statement.

Vernon Coaker: The pooled treatment budget for substance misuse (PTB) and the young people's substance misuse partnership grant (YPSMPG) is allocated to each one of 149 local drug action teams (DATs). Together with mainstream funding, DATs use this to meet locally assessed needs by commissioning services for drug work, such as treatment and education, from a range of providers which can include private charities, as well as voluntary and statutory organisations.

Human Trafficking

Damian Green: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if she will announce a timetable for the ratification of the Council of Europe Convention on People Trafficking; and if she will make a statement.

Vernon Coaker: The Government are determined to prioritise the effort to tackle the misery of human trafficking. That is why in line with our wider strategy to combat trafficking we intend to ratify the Convention before the end of this year subject to achieving necessary changes to domestic legislation in all parts of the UK.

Licensed Premises: Non-Domestic Rates

Eric Pickles: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the maximum increase in business rates is that can be levied on licensed premises in an alcohol disorder zone.

Vernon Coaker: Alcohol disorder zones (ADZs) are designed to address the problem of alcohol-related crime and disorder in town and city centres when all other measures have failed. The charge to license holders in relation to the costs incurred in respect of an alcohol disorder zone is completely separate from business rates. The details of the charging scheme are set out in the draft regulations which were laid on 8 January 2008.

National Firearms Licensing Management System

James Brokenshire: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what recent assessment she has made of  (a) the compatibility of the software used in the National Firearms Licensing Management System with the software used in the National Firearms Register on the Police National Computer and  (b) the interface between the two systems; and if she will make a statement.

Vernon Coaker: The software within the National Firearms Licensing Management System is compatible with the National Firearms Register on the Police National Computer in that the systems communicate directly with each other through an automated electronic interface.
	The National Policing Improvement Agency is now heading a review of the effectiveness of the interface in light of operational experience.

Passports: Pensioners

Andrew Dismore: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many pensioners in  (a) Hendon and  (b) the UK have received free passports.

Meg Hillier: The Identity and Passport Service (IPS) does not ask passport holders to keep their address up to date on our database. Therefore, IPS cannot identify the number of current residents by geographical area that have taken advantage of the scheme to issue free passports to those applicants born on or before 2 September 1929.
	However, from October 2004, when the concessionary scheme was introduced, until 31 December 2007, 468,264 people born on or before 2 September 1929 have been issued with free passports in the United Kingdom.
	The entitlement also included a refund available to those that were eligible and applied for a passport in the period between 19 May 2004 and the inception of the scheme. Therefore, the total number includes 18,901 refunds that have been applied for and processed under this provision.

NORTHERN IRELAND

Burglary

Nigel Dodds: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many  (a) robberies and  (b) burglaries were reported in each Police Service of Northern Ireland District Command Unit in each of the last 10 years; and how many of these resulted in convictions.

Paul Goggins: The number of recorded robberies in Northern Ireland fell by 648 (29 per cent.) between 2001-02 and 2006-07. The number of recorded burglaries fell by 5581 (32.5 per cent.) in the same period.
	The Policing Board and the PSNI have made reducing the number of domestic burglaries a key priority and this was included as a specific target in the 2007-10 Policing Plan.
	Tables 1 and 2 show the numbers of recorded robberies and burglaries in each district command unit since the new structure was set up in 2001-02.
	Table 3 documents the number of prosecutions and convictions for robberies while Table 4 documents the same for burglaries. The figures relate to the police district command unit in which an offender's address falls.
	Data are collated on the principal offence rule; so only the most serious offence with which an offender is charged is included.
	It is not possible routinely to reconcile recorded crime data from PSNI with prosecution and conviction data. Data from PSNI relate to the number of offences whereas data on prosecutions and convictions relate to the number of offenders brought before the courts. In addition, PSNI data denote each offence as it has been initially recorded and this may differ from the offence for which a suspect or suspects are subsequently proceeded against in the courts, therefore prosecution and conviction statistics should not be compared with the number recorded.
	
		
			  Table 1: Recorded robbery offences 
			  DCU  2001-02  2002-03  2003-04  2004-05  2005-06  2006-07 
			 Antrim 57 57 47 38 29 30 
			 Ards 50 90 47 37 21 17 
			 East Belfast 180 241 167 72 84 97 
			 North Belfast 292 361 243 206 354 264 
			 South Belfast 543 517 398 341 334 333 
			 West Belfast 160 207 142 118 159 154 
			 Carrickfergus 40 30 25 13 27 13 
			 Castlereagh 60 98 71 43 45 41 
			 Down 57 43 41 21 20 27 
			 Lisburn 111 97 126 96 115 97 
			 Newtownabbey 114 157 115 101 126 66 
			 North Down 74 101 70 48 46 35 
			 Urban region 1,738 1,199 1,492 1,134 1,360 1,174 
			
			 Armagh 27 26 26 20 24 23 
			 Ballymena 43 33 48 40 43 44 
			 Ballymoney 10 11 8 6 4 3 
			 Banbridge 11 18 14 12 12 13 
			 Coleraine 48 58 52 38 33 32 
			 Cookstown 8 11 12 8 6 8 
			 Craigavon 68 96 58 50 67 54 
			 Dungannon and South Tyrone 12 15 13 14 19 19 
			 Fermanagh 16 12 17 9 13 10 
			 Foyle 90 86 85 69 72 78 
			 Larne 18 13 11 4 6 11 
			 Limavady 12 9 6 4 3 5 
			 Magherafelt 11 8 12 4 15 5 
			 Moyle 4 3 8 8 3 5 
			 Newry and Mourne 70 60 75 47 40 65 
			 Omagh 15 19 22 11 4 11 
			 Strabane 21 20 14 9 20 14 
			 Rural region 484 498 481 353 384 400 
			
			 Total 2,222 2,497 1,973 1,487 1,744 1,574 
		
	
	
		
			  Table 2: Recorded burglary offences 
			  DCU  2001-02  2002-03  2003-04  2004-05  2005-06  2006-07 
			 Antrim 422 559 458 365 304 331 
			 Ards 630 749 667 488 447 314 
			 East Belfast 1,026 1,174 913 748 632 534 
			 North Belfast 1,025 997 915 1,075 679 752 
			 South Belfast 1,704 2,045 1,694 1,769 1,241 1,188 
			 West Belfast 505 432 350 389 455 537 
			 Carrickfergus 282 242 201 142 135 146 
			 Castlereagh 634 648 578 313 540 357 
			 Down 749 914 770 465 529 624 
			 Lisburn 970 1,010 1,019 771 868 875 
			 Newtownabbey 845 937 862 771 615 567 
			 North Down 691 855 734 515 528 366 
			 Urban region 9,483 10,562 9,161 7,811 6,973 6,591 
			
			 Armagh 421 503 425 411 454 373 
			 Ballymena 610 682 565 418 398 362 
			 Ballymoney 223 209 142 105 98 81 
			 Banbridge 343 364 336 285 301 304 
			 Coleraine 738 683 623 575 521 463 
			 Cookstown 249 226 204 155 237 122 
			 Craigavon 1,041 1,289 1,034 607 726 549 
			 Dungannon and South Tyrone 403 445 342 320 303 275 
			 Fermanagh 420 400 466 346 347 298 
			 Foyle 979 885 991 701 737 649 
			 Larne 260 263 186 172 144 155 
			 Limavady 248 235 239 184 221 231 
			 Magherafelt 220 204 153 91 121 81 
			 Moyle 157 173 162 94 79 104 
			 Newry and Mourne 720 881 759 793 837 636 
			 Omagh 377 399 360 194 206 169 
			 Strabane 247 256 241 126 133 119 
			 Rural region 7,657 8,097 7,228 5,577 5,863 4,971 
			
			 Total 17,143 18,659 16,389 13,388 12,836 11,562 
		
	
	
		
			  Table 3: Prosecutions and convictions for robberies 
			   2000  2001  2002 
			   Prosecutions  Convictions  Prosecutions  Convictions  Prosecutions  Convictions 
			 Antrim 3 2 5 5 4 4 
			 Aids 2 2 7 7 11 9 
			 Armagh 2 0 2 1 3 1 
			 Banbridge 1 1 1 1 0 0 
			 Belfast East 15 15 12 11 14 14 
			 Belfast North 15 13 11 7 25 23 
			 Belfast South 13 12 10 6 14 10 
			 Belfast West 18 13 20 14 29 24 
			 Ballymena 7 6 8 8 0 0 
			 Ballymoney 1 1 3 3 0 0 
			 Carrickfergus 3 3 1 1 3 3 
			 Coleraine 8 7 4 4 6 6 
			 Cookstown 0 0 1 0 2 2 
			 Craigavon 2 2 3 2 1 1 
			 Castlereagh 2 2 4 3 3 2 
			 Dungannon and South Tyrone 1 1 1 1 1 0 
			 Down 0 0 4 3 1 1 
			 Fermanagh 5 5 0 0 2 2 
			 Foyle 6 6 15 14 10 9 
			 Lame 2 2 0 0 2 2 
			 Limavady 0 0 5 4 1 1 
			 Lisburn 11 8 9 7 22 15 
			 Magherafelt 2 2 0 0 0 0 
			 Moyle 1 1 3 3 1 1 
			 Newtownabbey 3 2 2 2 7 6 
			 North Down 9 9 6 6 4 4 
			 Newry and Mourne 2 2 6 2 5 4 
			 Omagh 0 0 3 2 6 5 
			 Strabane 3 1 1 1 1 1 
			 Missing 4 4 4 3 2 2 
			 Total 141 122 151 121 180 152 
		
	
	
		
			   2003  2004  2005 
			  District Command unit  Prosecutions  Convictions  Prosecutions  Convictions  Prosecutions  Convictions 
			 Antrim 1 1 4 4 3 1 
			 Ards 7 7 5 4 6 5 
			 Armagh 3 2 3 2 3 3 
			 Banbridge 2 2 0 0 0 0 
			 Belfast East 15 15 13 13 10 9 
			 Belfast North 28 21 16 13 18 15 
			 Belfast South 19 18 3 3 9 6 
			 Belfast West 47 41 28 21 32 26 
			 Ballymena 4 4 15 15 7 6 
			 Ballymoney 0 0 0 0 1 1 
			 Carrickfergus 3 2 1 1 1 1 
			 Coleraine 3 3 6 4 7 3 
			 Cookstown 2 2 6 3 1 1 
			 Craigavon 11 4 10 9 0 0 
			 Castlereagh 3 3 4 4 2 2 
			 Dungannon and South Tyrone 1 1 3 2 0 0 
			 Down 11 9 4 4 4 4 
			 Fermanagh 0 0 0 0 4 3 
			 Foyle 11 10 24 19 10 6 
			 Larne 2 0 0 0 0 0 
			 Limavady 1 1 0 0 5 4 
			 Lisburn 25 23 18 12 32 28 
			 Magherafelt 2 2 1 1 0 0 
			 Moyle 1 1 1 0 1 0 
			 Newtownabbey 6 3 6 6 1 1 
			 North Down 5 4 1 1 1 0 
			 Newry and Mourne 2 2 9 5 5 5 
			 Omagh 4 2 5 5 2 2 
			 Strabane 2 1 4 4 2 2 
			 Missing 9 8 5 4 2 1 
			 Total 230 192 195 159 169 135 
			  Note: Missing data relate to those offenders for whom police DCU information is not available. 
		
	
	
		
			  Table 4: Prosecutions and convictions for burglaries 
			   2000  2001  2002 
			  District Command Unit  Prosecutions  Convictions  Prosecutions  Convictions  Prosecutions  Convictions 
			 Antrim 12 11 8 4 6 6 
			 Ards 25 22 18 12 21 16 
			 Armagh 21 20 20 14 20 17 
			 Banbridge 20 17 11 8 16 12 
			 Belfast East 66 57 42 33 39 31 
			 Belfast North 89 74 57 38 75 55 
			 Belfast South 59 47 28 19 54 42 
			 Belfast West 88 72 67 53 74 60 
			 Ballymena 38 35 32 28 30 27 
			 Ballymoney 15 15 12 12 10 9 
			 Carrickfergus 16 12 21 13 9 9 
			 Coleraine 23 22 20 16 15 15 
			 Cookstown 8 6 13 8 5 3 
			 Craigavon 29 22 19 12 25 21 
			 Castlereagh 10 10 14 12 24 20 
			 Dungannon and South Tyrone 21 18 21 16 12 8 
			 Down 19 13 19 9 23 18 
			 Fermanagh 22 16 13 8 14 14 
			 Foyle 59 52 66 57 87 71 
			 Larne 20 15 18 16 7 7 
			 Limavady 11 10 9 8 11 8 
			 Lisburn 41 35 31 20 49 37 
			 Magherafelt 4 4 9 5 5 3 
			 Moyle 1 1 2 2 4 4 
			 Newtownabbey 19 12 10 10 14 13 
			 North Down 26 24 17 13 26 22 
			 Newry and Mourne 15 12 20 13 25 14 
			 Omagh 19 17 21 15 13 13 
			 Strabane 22 19 19 12 13 10 
			 Missing 18 13 15 10 12 10 
			 Total 836 703 672 496 738 595 
		
	
	
		
			   2003  2004  2005 
			  District Command Unit  Prosecutions  Convictions  Prosecutions  Convictions   
			 Antrim 16 12 16 12 15 14 
			 Ards 11 11 14 14 13 7 
			 Armagh 23 20 15 11 23 15 
			 Banbridge 11 6 8 6 8 3 
			 Belfast East 44 40 42 32 34 23 
			 Belfast North 94 82 88 72 79 66 
			 Belfast South 55 51 31 25 46 35 
			 Belfast West 73 56 95 72 68 59 
			 Ballymena 30 25 34 22 17 15 
			 Ballymoney 7 6 5 5 6 5 
			 Carrickfergus 4 4 5 3 12 9 
			 Coleraine 16 14 29 20 25 19 
			 Cookstown 15 9 19 15 16 15 
			 Craigavon 33 18 48 35 29 23 
			 Castlereagh 11 11 27 23 9 7 
			 Dungannon and South Tyrone 21 15 15 9 13 11 
			 Down 30 20 26 23 37 28 
			 Fermanagh 11 8 9 7 12 12 
			 Foyle 59 49 88 71 67 51 
			 Larne 9 9 9 7 11 10 
			 Limavady 9 7 8 6 10 7 
			 Lisburn 58 46 54 42 67 45 
			 Magherafelt 9 8 10 5 4 4 
			 Moyle 3 3 4 4 4 2 
			 Newtownabbey 10 9 19 15 29 24 
			 North Down 18 14 13 11 18 12 
			 Newry and Mourne 28 17 22 20 31 19 
			 Omagh 19 12 18 16 9 9 
			 Strabane 10 7 4 1 5 2 
			 Missing 15 13 19 16 8 6 
			 Total 752 602 794 620 725 557 
			  Note: Missing data relate to those offenders for whom police DCU information is not available.

Crime Prevention

Gregory Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many households have used the Lock Out Crime scheme in Northern Ireland since inception.

Paul Goggins: A total of 18,216 households registered for the Lock Out Crime scheme and 16,928 homes had additional home security devices installed.

Prisoners: Correspondence

Lady Hermon: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what monitoring takes place of mail  (a) sent to and  (b) received by inmates in Northern Ireland prisons.

Paul Goggins: All mail sent to and received by inmates in Northern Ireland prisons is opened by prison staff and checked for any illicit enclosures or contraband.
	A 10 per cent. sample of mail sent and received is randomly censored by prison staff for security reasons.
	The only exception to this is legal and privileged mail. A record is kept of all mail sent to, and received by, inmates.

Rape

Nigel Dodds: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what arrangements are in place to provide counselling and advice to victims of male rape in Northern Ireland.

Paul Goggins: The provision of counselling services to victims of rape is now the responsibility of the Northern Ireland Administration, however, the Northern Ireland Office does fund Victim Support Northern Ireland to provide information, help and emotional support to all victims of crime. Victim support will also make onward referrals to organisations such as Nexus who provide counselling services to victims of sexual violence.
	The Northern Ireland Office is working jointly with the Department of Health, Social Services and Public Safety to develop a cross-cutting regional strategy on sexual violence which will be published in spring 2008. One of its key objectives is the establishment of a Sexual Assault Referral Centre which will provide immediate medical care, advice and other support services to all victims of sexual violence.

Rape

Nigel Dodds: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many accusations of rape were withdrawn in circumstances where admission of false allegations were made in Northern Ireland in each of the last 10 years.

Paul Goggins: Figures relating to the numbers of rape allegations which are withdrawn in circumstances where there is admission of false allegations are not recorded in the format requested.

BUSINESS, ENTERPRISE AND REGULATORY REFORM

Bank of Credit and Commerce International: Insolvency

Austin Mitchell: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform when the administration and liquidation of the Bank of Credit and Commerce International began; what fees were collected by insolvency practitioners and their advisers in relation to the Bank; and when the liquidation was finalised.

Patrick McFadden: The UK operation of BCCI was placed into provisional liquidation on 5 July 1991. At about the same time BCCI operations in Luxembourg (its place of registration) and in the Cayman Islands were also put into provisional liquidation. On 14 January 1992, attempts at rescue having failed, the High Court ordered that BCCI be wound up and similar orders were made in the other jurisdictions at about that time.
	The most recent date at which the costs of the liquidation are available is 15 January 2007, from the annual report to the Secretary of State. The English liquidators' remuneration totalled US $337 million paid and legal fees incurred by the English liquidators totalled US $225 million. In addition to those legal fees are the amounts which have been paid to the Bank of England following the abandonment of the liquidators' action in 2006, which totalled some 85 million, including VAT and interest. It is noteworthy that despite the high costs total moneys received by the UK liquidators as at 15 January 2007 amounted to just over US $4.1 billion and there had been five dividends to creditors who had by then received 81 per cent. of their debts. The liquidators paid a further dividend of 3 per cent. on 27 November 2007 and expect to make a further payment but are unable to provide detail at present.
	The liquidation is not yet finalized. The liquidators are making every effort to conclude the liquidation and pay final amounts to creditors as soon as possible, however, the English liquidation is one of several worldwide that are closely linked and only when they are all substantially complete will it be possible for a formal conclusion in this country.

Bankruptcy

Paul Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform how many individuals in each  (a) age cohort and  (b) London borough filed for bankruptcy in each year since 1997; and if he will make a statement.

Patrick McFadden: The number of bankruptcies by age, and separately, by London borough can be seen in tables 1 and 2 as follows. This level of detailed information is only available for the years 2000 to 2006.
	
		
			  Table 1: Number of bankruptcy orders in England and Wales 
			  Age group  2000  2001  2002  2003  2004  2005  2006 
			 Under 25 876 1,051 1,254 1,725 2,648 3,498 4,006 
			 25 to 34 5,810 6,258 6,339 7,233 9,319 11,844 15,539 
			 35 to 44 6,358 6,964 7,210 8,265 10,377 13,590 18,532 
			 45 to 54 4,181 4,413 4,410 5,128 6,206 8,447 11,644 
			 55 to 64 1,662 1,908 2,145 2,633 3,405 4,707 6,662 
			 65 and over 403 418 587 713 983 1,470 2,262 
			 Missing ages 1,980 2,266 2,082 2,151 2,762 3,720 4,300 
			 Total 21,270 23,278 24,027 27,848 35,700 47,276 62,945 
		
	
	
		
			  Table 2: Number of bankruptcy orders in London boroughs 
			  London borough  2000  2001  2002  2003  2004  2005  2006 
			 Barking and Dagenham 49 45 40 82 86 132 224 
			 Barnet 66 86 85 94 135 215 250 
			 Bexley 62 69 66 89 119 178 182 
			 Brent 55 58 47 68 91 112 197 
			 Bromley 60 77 64 80 123 219 312 
			 Camden 42 66 50 105 143 202 264 
			 City of London 7 1 2 5 6 7 10 
			 City of Westminster 58 63 82 99 123 169 190 
			 Croydon 72 76 85 96 139 207 282 
			 Ealing 58 43 55 74 108 154 194 
			 Enfield 53 71 66 76 119 120 187 
			 Greenwich 58 48 77 90 121 190 250 
			 Hackney 29 45 58 76 129 195 265 
			 Hammersmith and Fulham 30 36 52 45 98 134 147 
			 Haringey 52 39 54 62 113 135 217 
			 Harrow 50 56 50 55 64 98 153 
			 Havering 62 56 49 89 94 169 181 
			 Hillingdon 69 49 47 74 83 163 202 
			 Hounslow 41 61 44 62 120 153 202 
			 Islington 46 45 67 76 142 199 243 
			 Kensington and Chelsea 53 58 60 83 125 149 181 
			 Kingston upon Thames 42 23 55 46 79 89 130 
			 Lambeth 56 73 95 154 372 403 319 
			 Lewisham 59 60 52 70 109 180 238 
			 Merton 41 36 43 64 91 107 105 
			 Newham 53 38 61 98 112 150 243 
			 Redbridge 42 62 51 73 95 143 195 
			 Richmond upon Thames 33 45 65 64 81 103 136 
			 Southwark 35 54 69 107 182 246 274 
			 Sutton 31 41 59 59 98 125 183 
			 Tower Hamlets 88 76 102 131 169 214 249 
			 Waltham Forest 45 48 31 55 96 134 216 
			 Wandsworth 50 57 48 87 93 140 164

Christmas

Simon Burns: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform how much his Department spent on  (a) Christmas cards and  (b) postage of Christmas cards in 2007.

Gareth Thomas: The cost of producing 900 departmental Christmas cards in 2007 was 1,020.81.
	Specific postage costs cannot be provided as the cards were posted along with regular departmental mail.

Departmental Marketing

Eric Pickles: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform how many branded plastic bags his Department has purchased in the last 24 months for which figures are available; and at what cost.

Gareth Thomas: Central records indicate that the Department has not purchased any departmentally branded plastic bags in the last two years.

Farepak

Austin Mitchell: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform when the investigation of Farepak will be finalised and the report published.

Patrick McFadden: I expect the investigation of Farepak to be completed within the next two to three months. For reasons given in a written ministerial statement by the Under-Secretary on 10 December, the report cannot be published. However, as my hon. Friend explained, if court proceedings ensue, information from the investigation will enter the public domain.

Fuel Poverty: Greater London

Tom Brake: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform how many households are classified as living in fuel poverty in each London borough.

Malcolm Wicks: London borough level estimates of fuel poverty are available only for 2003. The following table shows fuel poverty levels taken from the Fuel Poverty Indicator dataset (available online at http://www.fuelpovertyindicator.org.uk/) for all the London boroughs;
	
		
			  London Borough  Estimate of number of fuel poor households 
			 Barking and Dagenham 3,900 
			 Barnet 6,700 
			 Bexley 5,000 
			 Brent 5,300 
			 Bromley 6,700 
			 Camden 4,800 
			 City of London 200 
			 Croydon 7,700 
			 Ealing 6,100 
			 Enfield 6,000 
			 Greenwich 5,300 
			 Hackney 4,600 
			 Hammersmith and Fulham 3,800 
			 Haringey 5,200 
			 Harrow 4,000 
			 Havering 5,000 
			 Hillingdon 4,800 
			 Hounslow 4,300 
			 Islington 4,200 
			 Kensington and Chelsea 4,100 
			 Kingston upon Thames 3,200 
			 Lambeth 6,100 
			 Lewisham 5,900 
			 Merton 4,200 
			 Newham 5,800 
			 Redbridge 5,200 
			 Richmond upon Thames 4,100 
			 Southwark 5,400 
			 Sutton 3,900 
			 Tower Hamlets 3,800 
			 Waltham Forest 5,300 
			 Wandsworth 5,900 
			 Westminster 5,600 
			 Grand Total 16,2200

Home Information Packs

Eric Pickles: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform what role the new Local Better Regulation Office will play in the enforcement of home information pack regulations by local authorities.

Patrick McFadden: The Local Better Regulation Office's objective, as proposed in the Regulatory Enforcement and Sanctions Bill, is to ensure that local authorities in England and Wales exercise their statutory duties effectively, in a way which does not give rise to unnecessary burdens, and which is transparent, accountable, proportionate and consistent. It has a number of functions in pursuance of its objective. These could include LBRO ensuring that local authorities are enforcing home information pack regulations effectively and in accordance with the principles of better regulation, if the need arose.

Housing: Carbon Emissions

David Anderson: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform what steps are being taken to encourage householders to access the low carbon building programme.

Malcolm Wicks: We are working in partnership with the Energy Saving Trust to promote the low carbon buildings programme household funding stream, raising awareness of the funds that remain available to successful applicants.
	To date, we have used both their advice network and market segmentation models to target those that are most likely to install microgeneration technologies and apply for grants. We have also raised awareness at a national and regional level through the issuing of a press release that focussed on the low carbon buildings programme in
	December 2007.
	Furthermore, at officials' last review meeting with industry representatives in September 2007, we encouraged the involvement of industry in promoting the programme, and look forward to meeting with them in February 2008 to discuss the outcomes.
	Grants of up to 2,500 remain available to successful applicants until the funds are exhausted in full or March 2009, whichever comes sooner. Further details are available at www.lowcarbonbuildings.org.uk.

Industry: Heating

Gregory Barker: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform 
	(1)  what estimate he has made of the watts of heat which were generated by British industries between November 2006 and March 2007;
	(2)  what estimate he has made of the watts of heat generated in the UK by industry which were captured and reused between November 2006 and March 2007.

Malcolm Wicks: The latest data available are for 2005. They show that industrial sectors used 233.4 TWh of energy for heating purposes whilst the services sector used 149.7 TWh. The majority of this energy was supplied by gas and other heating fuels. These data are published in UK Energy Consumption on the BERR website.
	The topic of utilising surplus heat is being considered as part of work on Heat, with a Call for Evidence due to be published by the end of January.

Insolvency: Complaints

Austin Mitchell: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform if he will bring forward legislative proposals to ensure that all complaints against insolvency practitioners are investigated by a body independent of the accountancy and law trade associations.

Patrick McFadden: There are no plans to bring forward such legislative proposals.

Insolvency: Complaints

Austin Mitchell: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform how many complaints made against insolvency practitioners in the last 10 years were not resolved within five years.

Patrick McFadden: The seven recognised professional bodies that are authorised by the Secretary of State for the purpose of authorising and regulating insolvency practitioners are not required to maintain or provide this information to the Secretary of State. Of the 90 insolvency practitioners who are authorised by the Secretary of State, officials are not aware of any complaints that took more than five years to resolve.

Insolvency: Fees and Charges

Austin Mitchell: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform if he will investigate instances of insolvency practitioners charging more than 500 per hour.

Patrick McFadden: The Insolvency Rules 1986 determine how the remuneration of an office holder (liquidator/trustee etc.) is to be fixed and provide that such remuneration shall be fixed by reference to the time properly given to the administration, or as a percentage of the assets which are realised and distributed. In most insolvency cases it is for the liquidation or creditors' committee to determine the basis for fixing the remuneration or, in the absence of such a committee, the creditors decide the matter. The Rules also make provision for the court to review the amount of remuneration charged.
	As the amount of remuneration is subject to review by the court the Secretary of State has no powers to investigate the amount of remuneration charged.

Insolvency: Fees and Charges

Austin Mitchell: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform if he will make it his policy to investigate those cases where the fees paid to insolvency practitioners exceed 10 per cent. of the cash collected by them.

Patrick McFadden: The Secretary of State has no plans to investigate the fees paid to insolvency practitioners. In liquidation and bankruptcy cases it is for those who have most interest in the matter, the creditors, to consider the level of remuneration charged by an insolvency practitioner and they, or the relevant committee, must approve such remuneration. Where a minority of creditors are concerned that the remuneration appears excessive, provided at least 25 per cent. in value of creditors agree, application may be made for the court to review the level of remuneration charged.

Insolvency: Licensing

Austin Mitchell: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform how many insolvency practitioners have been licensed by each of the recognised supervisory bodies.

Patrick McFadden: The most recent figures for the number of insolvency practitioners licensed by each of the recognised supervisory bodies are set out in tabular form as follows:
	
		
			  Year 2007 
			  Authorising body  Total number of IP s  as at 1 January 2007 
			 The Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales (ICAEW) 729 
			 Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA) 174 
			 The Institute of Chartered Accountants of Scotland (ICAS) 106 
			 The Institute of Chartered Accountants in Ireland (ICAI) 46 
			 Insolvency Practitioners Association (IPA) 369 
			 The Law Society (LS) 152 
			 The Law Society of Scotland (LSS) 16 
			 Total 1,592

Insolvency: Regulation

Austin Mitchell: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform if he will bring forward legislative proposals to achieve the regulation of the insolvency industry by a single independent regulator.

Patrick McFadden: The Secretary of State has no plans to bring forward proposals to provide for a single insolvency regulator. The Insolvency Regulation Working Party considered this matter and in their report, published in 1999, emphasised that insolvency practice had never been the prerogative of any one profession. The Working Party also considered that the operational role allocated to the professional bodies in the regulation of insolvency practitioners had bought significant value in creating a regulatory infrastructure and in extending the scope of regulation.

Maxwell Companies: Insolvency

Austin Mitchell: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform when the administration and liquidation of the Maxwell Group of Companies began; what fees were collected by insolvency practitioners and their advisers in relation to the companies; and when the liquidation was finalised.

Patrick McFadden: The Maxwell Group of Companies has never been a single group of companies under common ownership or in a common insolvency proceeding. The term is a generally descriptive one that has been used to refer, inter alia, to Maxwell Communication Corporation plc (MCC), Mirror Group Newspapers plc (MGN), various private companies reputedly in the ownership of the Maxwell family and certain pension scheme related companies.
	MGN did not enter any form of insolvency proceeding.
	MCC was a parent company of some 400 companies worldwide, and entered administration on 20 December 1991. The majority of the subsidiary companies entered various forms of insolvency proceeding, most of which have been finalised. MCC remains in administration. The majority of private companies and pension related companies also entered various insolvency proceedings during December 1991.
	In relation to MCC and some 300 of its subsidiaries, as at 31 May 2007 the administrator's legal and other professional fees amounted to some 59 million. In addition, a further 33 million of fees were incurred in relation to litigation actions. Total realisations, including recovery actions, amount to more than 1,200 million.
	Further fees were borne by various MCC subsidiary companies that are not included in the above. In addition, the figures do not include fees incurred in relation to the various private companies and pension scheme related companies, information which is not readily available to the Insolvency Service without incurring disproportionate cost.

Members: Correspondence

John Barrett: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform when he will reply to the hon. Member for Edinburgh West's letters of 10 October 2007 and 23 November 2007, with regard to Mr. Iain Hay of Edinburgh.

Gareth Thomas: I apologise for the delay in responding to the hon. Member. This was due to an administrative error. A reply will be issued shortly.

National Identity Register

Philip Hammond: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform what plans his Department has to make use of data on the national identity register when they are established; and what the estimated annual cost to his Department of that use is.

Gareth Thomas: The Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform will be working with the Home Office prior to the introduction of the national identity scheme to establish how identity information held on the proposed national identity register might be used to provide easier access to the Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform's services for our customers. It is too early in the process to establish the detailed costs and benefits.

Nuclear Power Stations

Jennifer Willott: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform 
	(1)  with reference to the answer of 8 July 2006,  Official Report, columns 779-80W, on nuclear power stations, whether the full costs of funding research into Generation IV reactor designs will be met by private investors should a new generation of nuclear reactors be built in the UK; and if he will make a statement;
	(2)  how much has been spent from the public purse on research into Generation IV reactor designs; and if he will make a statement.

Malcolm Wicks: In line with the reactor designs currently being assessed by the regulators through the Generic Design Assessment (GDA) process, any new nuclear reactors built over the next 10 to 15 years will be Generation III designs. These designs are already available commercially and any research necessary for their deployment in the UK will be a matter for industry.
	Generation IV reactor designs are not expected to be built commercially until 2030 or beyond. Basic research into aspects of their development, for example on new materials that would be reliable at higher temperatures, is generally too far from potential exploitation in the market place to attract private sector funding. Basic research of this type is likely to continue to rely on public funding through the UK Research Councils and the European Union Euratom Framework programme, with the level of support dependent upon both the quality of the scientific proposals and the strategic priority given to that research area by the organisations concerned.
	BERR does not fund research into Generation IV advanced reactors systems and the UK has now stood down as an active member of the Generation IV International Forum (GIF). The decision to stand down reflected the need to match financial and other resources with the Department's strategic priorities. While valuable in some respects, further involvement in the forum was not considered to be as relevant to the Department's mission as other competing priorities.
	Since 2005 the UK Research Councils, which are funded from the science budget through the Department for Innovation, Universities and Skills, have provided some 1.63 million to support research relevant to Generation IV advance reactor systems.
	UK research organisations also participate in European research collaborations relevant to Generation IV advance reactor systems that are funded by the European Commission. Details of collaborations from 2002-06 (including a small number on advanced reactor systems) can be found in Euratom FP6 Research Projects and Training Activities Vols 1-3, which are available from the following website:
	http://ec.europa.eu/research/energy/fi/fi_pubs/article_1186_en.htm

Nuclear Power Stations: Finance

Dai Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform what representations he has received from energy companies interested in building new nuclear power stations on guarantees for the funding of radioactive waste arisings and final decommissioning of any new plants constructed.

Malcolm Wicks: Government are clear that any energy company that operates a new nuclear power station must pay its full costs of decommissioning and its full share of waste management and disposal costs. The Energy Bill, introduced to Parliament on 10 January 2008, will impose new legal duties on operators in this regard and will create new powers for Ministers to ensure that operators meet those duties.
	In the course of his official engagements, the Secretary of State regularly meets representatives from energy companies as well as other stakeholders. Representations by energy companies interested in building new nuclear power were received in response to the Government consultation on The Future of Nuclear Power which closed on 10 October 2007 and are available on the BERR website.

Political Levy

Andrew Tyrie: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform pursuant to the answer of 17 December 2007,  Official Report, column 1073W, on the political levy, what guidance has been produced or offered by  (a) his Department and  (b) the Certification Officer, on the (i) legality and (ii) appropriateness of the practice of trade unions charging the same overall subscription fee for members who opt-out and re-diverting the political levy revenue into their general fund.

Patrick McFadden: The Department has produced guidance on contracting out of a political fund in a publication entitled 'Trade union political funds: a guide for trade unions, their members and others'. The Certification Officer has also produced guidance on contracting out of a political fund in a publication entitled 'Guidance for trade unions and employers' associations wishing to establish a political fund'. These guidance materials describe the statutory requirements relating to the manner of giving effect to exemptions.

Political Levy

Andrew Tyrie: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform pursuant to the answer of 17 December 2007,  Official Report, column 1073W, on the political levy, according to records held by the Certification Officer, how many union members each union has who do not contribute to the general fund.

Patrick McFadden: The following table shows the number of members not contributing to the general fund of the trade unions concerned. As before, the figures are based on the latest returns made to the Certification Officer by the relevant trade unions.
	
		
			  Name  Total number of union members declared on union's annual return to Certification Officer (a)  Total number of members contributing to the general fund declared on union's annual return to Certification Officer (b)  Number of members not contributing to the general fund (a) - (b) 
			 Amicus(1) 1,175,910 795,526 380,384 
			 Aspect 3,969 3,969 0 
			 Associated Society of Locomotive Engineers and Firemen 17,944 17,944 0 
			 Association of Revenue and Customs 2,594 2,594 0 
			 Bakers Food and Allied Workers Union 25,057 24,564 493 
			 Broadcasting Entertainment Cinematograph and Theatre Union 26,543 26,543 0 
			 Communication Workers Union 238,817 238,817 0 
			 Community 33,459 29,117 4,342 
			 Connect, the Union for Professionals in Communications 19,473 19,473 0 
			 Educational Institute of Scotland 59,978 58,829 1,149 
			 Fire Brigades Union 45,839 45,839 0 
			 GMB 575,892 575,892 0 
			 Musicians Union 32,641 32,641 0 
			 National Association of Colliery Deputies and Shotfirers 429 336 93 
			 National Association of Schoolmasters Union of Woman Teachers 298,884 251,763 47,121 
			 National Association of Teachers in Further and Higher Education 69,849 62,023 7,826 
			 National Union of Mineworkers 9,910 7,418 2,492 
			 National Union of Mineworkers North Western Cheshire and Cumbria Miners Association 17 17 0 
			 National Union of Rail Maritime and Transport Workers 74,539 65,399 9,140 
			 POA 35,772 35,772 0 
			 Prospect 101,532 90,456 11,076 
			 Transport and General Workers Union(1) 751,869 670,432 81,437 
			 Transport Salaried Staffs' Association 30,570 30,570 0 
			 Union of Construction Allied Trades and Technicians 128,914 124,217 4,697 
			 Union of Democratic Mineworkers 2,268 2,268 0 
			 Union of Shop Distributive and Allied Workers 341,291 341,291 0 
			 Unison, the Public Services Union 1,343,000 1,343,000 0 
			 Unity 7,239 7,239 0 
			 (1) Final return for period up to 26 April 2007.

Post Offices

Tom Brake: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform 
	(1)  what Crown post offices there are, broken down by Government Region; and in each case whether the premises are  (a) owned outright,  (b) jointly owned and  (c) leased by the Government; and if he will make a statement;
	(2)  how many Crown post offices there were on 1 May 1997.

Patrick McFadden: This is an operational matter for Post Office Ltd (POL). I have therefore asked Alan Cook, Managing Director of POL to reply direct to the hon. Member.
	Copies of the letter will be placed in the Libraries of the House.

Regional European Offices: Finance

Eric Pickles: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how much central Government funding the North West Brussels Office received in each of the last five years.

Stephen Timms: The North West Brussels Office does not receive funding directly from the central Government.

INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT

Whales

Bill Wiggin: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, 
	(1)  what discussions he has had with representatives of other Governments on whaling since the IWC59 meeting; and if he will make a statement;
	(2)  whether he plans to discuss whaling and the international moratorium on whaling with other Governments before the IWC60 meeting; and if he will make a statement;
	(3)  what recent discussions he has had with his foreign counterparts on the subject of whale conservation; and if he will make a statement.

Jonathan R Shaw: I have been asked to reply.
	The UK forms part of a core anti-whaling grouping within the International Whaling Commission (IWC) and supports the IWC's moratorium on commercial whaling. The UK remains strongly opposed to any attempt to lift or weaken the moratorium and, in the longer term, wishes to see it strengthened. We will be meeting with the core anti-whaling group in the run up to IWC60. Posts abroad will also lobby a wide range of Governments prior to the meeting to ensure support for the moratorium.
	The UK has led efforts to recruit more conservation-minded countries to the IWC through our publication 'Protecting WhalesA Global Responsibility'. This publication has recently been updated and was re-released on 21 December 2007. In the coming weeks, posts will deliver the updated version to host Governments, and will continue to engage in discussion with their counterparts on whaling at every appropriate opportunity.
	This year, my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State will write to 18 countries encouraging them to join the IWC for the greater protection of whales.
	The UK Government have consistently voiced their opposition to Japanese scientific whaling. Most recently, on 8 January, I called in the deputy ambassador from the Japanese embassy in London to express the UK's outrage and urge Japan to end its slaughter of whales.
	On 21 December 2007, the UK along with 29 other countries took part in a demarch to the Japanese Government calling on Japan to
	cease all its lethal scientific research on whales, and assure the immediate return of the vessels which are implementing JARPA II (the Japanese 'scientific' Research Programme in the Antarctic).

LEADER OF THE HOUSE

Departmental Ministerial Policy Advisors

Mark Hoban: To ask the Leader of the House whether any of her special advisers have outside appointments.

Harriet Harman: Special advisers are appointed under terms and conditions set out in the Model Contract and Code of Conduct for Special Advisers, copies of which are in the Library of the House.
	My special advisers do not have any outside appointments.

Members: Pensions

David Laws: To ask the Leader of the House what estimate she has made of the required rate of employer contribution to the pension scheme of hon. Members using the FRS 17 accounting standard to assess the costs of that scheme; and if she will make a statement.

Helen Goodman: None. The Resource Accounts and actuarial valuation use different measures of the cost to the Exchequer of providing benefits under the PCPF because they are used for different purposes and use different assumptions about investment returns.
	The FRS 17 is an accounting standard used in reporting the liabilities and assets of the PCPF in the House of Commons Members Resource Accounts (HC 832). The Resource Accounts use the return on corporate bonds for the valuation of accrued liabilities and current service costs. The standard is a financial reporting standard and is not the appropriate tool for setting the level of employer contribution for the PCPF.
	The assessment of the required rate of employer contribution for the Parliamentary Contributory Pension Fund is made by the Government Actuary's Department every three years using a standard methodology which includes an assessment of the expected rate of return of the Fund's assets. This approach is widely used in the private and public sectors. The last actuarial review in 2005 assessed the underlying rate of employer contribution at 18.1 per cent. of Members' salaries with a further 8.7 per cent. required to make good the current deficit. The next actuarial review was agreed by the Trustees at their last meeting and any revision to the current employer contribution rate will come into effect from 2009.

JUSTICE

Antisocial Behaviour: Hampshire

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many  (a) cautions and  (b) fines have been issued for (i) vandalism, (ii) graffiti, (iii) litter and (iv) antisocial behaviour in each district and unitary council area in Hampshire in each of the last eight quarters for which records are available.

Maria Eagle: Information covering cautions and penalty notices for disorder (PNDs) issued for selected offences related to antisocial behaviour (including littering) in Hampshire police force area covering the years 2005 and 2006 are provided in tables 1 and 2. Antisocial behaviour is not a specific offence, but is defined as a person acting in an antisocial manner that caused or is likely to cause harassment alarm or distress.
	Data on cautions and PNDs for criminal damage are also provided in these tables. This offence class includes but cannot separately identify offences of  (a) vandalism and  (b) graffiti. Data broken down by each district and unitary council area in Hampshire are not held by my Department.
	The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) collects data on the number of fixed penalty notices issued for graffiti and littering broken down by local authority area. These data are provided in table 3.
	
		
			  Table 1: Number antisocial behaviour offences for which a caution was issued in the Hampshire police force area, by quarter, 2005 and 2006( 1,2) 
			2005  2006 
			  Offence description  Principal statute  Qtr1  Qtr2  Qtr3  Qtr4  Qtr1  Qtr2  Qtr3  Qtr4 
			 Causing wasteful employment of the police etc. Criminal Law Act 1967 Sec 5(2). 3 3 1 3 1 4 2 3 
			 Improper use of public electronic communications network Communications Act 2003 S.127 2 7 3 6 2 17 14 11 
			 False alarms of fire. Fire Services Act 1947 Sec 31.   1  
			 Harassment, alarm or distress. Public Order Act 1986 Sec 5. 95 86 108 87 131 109 110 94 
			 Throwing, casting or firing any fireworks in or into any highway, street, etc. public place. Explosives Act 1875, Sec 80. 1
			 Any person who in any public place is guilty, while drunk, of disorderly behaviour. Criminal Justice Act 1967 Sec.91. 30 24 42 62 26 28 20 17 
			 Holder of occasional permission or his agent knowingly selling to, knowingly allow consumption by or allowing any person to sell, intoxicating liquor to a person under 18. Selling etc. intoxicating liquor to person under 18 for consumption on the premises. Licensing (Occasional Permissions) Act 1983 Schedule (Sec 3) para 4(1). Licensing Act 1964 Sec 169(1).  1   
			 Person who buys or attempts to buy alcohol on behalf of an individual under 18. Licensing Act 2003 S149(3,4,7b)   1  
			 Contravning a community support officer's requirement not to consume liquor. Penalty offence under S.1. Criminal Justice and Police Act 2001alcohol consumption in designated public places. Police Reform Act 2002 Sch.4 Para.5 (Criminal Justice and Police Act 2001 S.12). Criminal Justice and Police Act 2001 S12.   1  
			 Other criminal damage(3) Various 26 10 67 58 55 45 43 49 
			 Stealing from shops and stalls (shoplifting) Theft Act 1968 Sec 1. 451 469 431 458 343 343 318 335 
			 Trespass, throwing stones. British Transport Commission act 1949 S.55,56. Railway Offences: Offences against Private Acts relating to Railways (other than 169,1-6). 2  1  
			 Being found drunk in a highway or other Public place whether a building or not, or a licensed premises. Licensing Act 1872 Sec 12. 6 5 2 2 4 5 2 1 
			 Person who buys or attempts to buy alcohol en behalf of an individual under 18. Licensing Act 2003 S149 (3,4,7b)   1  
			 Depositing litter. Environmental Protection Act 1990 Sec.87. 1
			 Total  615 604 654 676 564 552 514 510 
			 (1) Data provided on the principal offence basis. (2) Every effort is made to ensure that the figures presented are accurate and complete. However, it is important to note that these data have been extracted from large administrative data systems generated by police forces. As a consequence, care should be taken to ensure data collection processes and their inevitable limitations are taken into account when those data are used. (3) Includes offences of vandalism and graffiti but is not exclusive to those offences.  Source: Court proceedings databaseOffice for Criminal Justice ReformMinistry of Justice 
		
	
	
		
			  Table 2. Number of penalty notices for disorder issued in Hampshire police force area, by offence and quarter, 2005 and 2006( 1) 
			   2005  2006 
			  Offence description  Qtr1  Qtr2  Qtr3  Qtr4  Qtr1  Qtr2  Qtr3  Qtr4 
			 Wasting police time 7 6 11 7 13 15 36 32 
			 Misuse of public telecommunications system 2 3  9 12 17 22 29 
			 Giving false alarm to fire and rescue authority  2  2 
			 Causing harassment, alarm or distress 456 465 397 472 552 718 831 796 
			 Throwing fireworks 4 2 2 4 3 1 7 17 
			 Drunk and disorderly 242 247 208 269 161 147 116 122 
			 Selling alcohol to under 18 (now DA18) 4 8 10 45 23 32 31 23 
			 Purchasing alcohol for under 18 (now DA19) 6 1 1 1 1 6 3 6 
			 Purchasing alcohol for under 18 for cons on premises 1 21   
			 Delivery of alcohol to person under 18 or allowing such delivery 3 3 1 1 1 1 2  
			 Criminal Damage (under 500)(2) 44 61 42 64 61 80 92 121 
			 Theft (retail under 200) 97 126 97 109 106 117 178 255 
			 Breach of fireworks curfew2 
			 Possession of category 4 firework 1   2 1
			 Possession by a person under 18 of adult firework 1 1   
			 Sale of alcohol to drunken person1  1   
			 Supply of alcohol to person under 18 1 1  - 
			 Trespass on a railway   4  
			 Throwing stones at a train / railway1 
			 Drunk in a highway 25 14 19 20 12 5 7 8 
			 Consumption of alcohol in public place  1 1  3 8 18 12 
			 Depositing and leaving litter 8 9 4 6 6 4 15 11 
			 Consumption of alcohol by under 18 on licensed premises  1  1 
			 Buying or Attempting to buy alcohol for person under 18 1
			 Total 901 951 793 1,013 957 1,155 1,362 1,435 
			 (1) Every effort is made to ensure that the figures presented are accurate and complete. However, it is important to note that these data have been extracted from large administrative data systems generated by police forces As a consequence, care should be taken to ensure data collection processes and their inevitable limitations are taken into account when those data are used. (2) includes offences of vandalism and graffiti but is not exclusive to those offences. 
		
	
	
		
			  Table 3: Number of  f ixed  p enalty  n otices issued for graffiti and litter in Hampshire 
			   Graffiti  Litter 
			  Authority  April 2006 to March 2007  April 2005 to March 2006  April 2006 to March 2007  April 2005 to March 2006 
			 Basingstoke and Deane BC 0 0 1 3 
			 E Hampshire DC 0 0 14 0 
			 Eastleigh BC 0 0 0 0 
			 Fareham 0 0 4 75 
			 Gosport BC 0 0 4 0 
			 Hart DC 0 0 0 0 
			 Havant BC 1 0 12 0 
			 Isle of Wight DC 0 0 0 0 
			 New Forest DC 0 0 0 0 
			 Portsmouth CC 0 0 21 28 
			 Rushmoor BC 0 0 0 0 
			 Southampton CC 1 0 276 285 
			 Test Valley BC 0 0 123 10 
			 Winchester CC 0 0 0 0 
			  Source:  DEFRA

Chelmsford Prison: Suicide

Simon Burns: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice 
	(1)  how many suicides there have been in Chelmsford Prison since 4 May 2007; what steps are being taken to prevent suicides at Chelmsford Prison; and if he will make a statement;
	(2)  what assessment he has made of the trend in the number of suicides in Chelmsford Prison since 2006; and if he will make a statement.

Maria Eagle: There have been four apparent self-inflicted deaths at Chelmsford Prison since 4 May 2007(1).
	Since 2004 the Prisons and Probation Ombudsman has been conducting investigations into all deaths in prison custody. All such deaths are also subject to a coroners inquest. The investigations into the deaths at HMP Chelmsford are on-going and it is too early to say what factors may have contributed to these particular deaths.
	However, we do know that the prison population contains a high proportion of very vulnerable individuals, many of whom have experienced negative life events that we know increase the likelihood of them harming themselves. Issues that increase risk include drug/alcohol abuse, family background and relationship problems, social disadvantage or isolation, previous sexual or physical abuse, and mental health problems.
	Every death in prison affects families, staff and other prisoners deeply. Ministers and the Prison Service are completely committed to reducing the number of such tragic incidents. The updated Prison Service suicide prevention strategy was published in October 2007 with implementation due to be completed in every prison, including Chelmsford, by end-April 2008. Building on several years of learning from the experience of prisoners, staff, investigators, inspectors and others, it incorporates developments such as improved cross-agency information flows, the provision of safer cells, increasing prisoner peer support, and the introduction of ACCT (assessment, care in custody and teamwork) the care-planning system for prisoners at risk of suicide or self-harm, introduced across the prisons estate in partnership with the Department of Health during 2005-07.
	HMP Chelmsford itself has developed a strong relationship with Samaritans to provide support for prisoners. Over the last year there has been a great deal of work to improve suicide prevention related training for staff. This includes training in ACCT, use of cut down tools, and resuscitation techniques.
	(1) to 14 January 2008.

Chorley Magistrates Court

Lindsay Hoyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many court cases are due to be heard in the Chorley, South Ribble and Ormskirk magistrates courts; what steps he is taking to ensure that cases are heard expeditiously at those courts; and if he will make a statement.

Maria Eagle: The number of cases due to be heard in the south west Lancashire magistrates courts fluctuates day to day depending on the numbers of offences being prosecuted by the Crown. A general indicator of the volume of work proceeding through the courts at any one time is the number of trials due to be heard.
	As at 21 December 2007, a total of 280 trials were listed to be heard at the three court sites in south west Lancashire. These trials were listed on trial dates up to and including April 2008. The 280 trials are made up of 108 trials to be heard at Chorley, 94 at Leyland, and 78 at Ormskirk.
	Ensuring cases are progressed through the courts as quickly and efficiently as possible is a key objective for the staff in HMCS.

Courts: Interpreters

Humfrey Malins: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how much was paid from the public purse to interpreters in the courts in the Greater London area in the most recent year for which figures are available.

Maria Eagle: The information requested is not collected for the Greater London area. This information could be provided at disproportionate cost only through the manual searching of individual court files.

Judges

Humfrey Malins: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many  (a) full-time and  (b) deputy district judges there were in England and Wales in each of the last five years.

Maria Eagle: The number of district judges (DJ), including district judges (Magistrates' Courts) (DJ(MC)), and deputy district judges (DDJ), including deputy district judges (Magistrates' Courts) (DDJ(MC)), in post for the period 2004-08 is as follows:
	
		
			  Number 
			   District Judges  Deputy District Judges  District Judges (Magistrates' Courts)  Deputy District Judges (Magistrates' Courts) 
			 2004 (1 April) 433 801 104 173 
			 2005 (1 April) 430 826 128 167 
			 2006 (1 April) 449 840 134 158 
			 2007 (1 April) 450 780 139 169 
			 2008 (1 January) 439 825 141 155

Offenders: Deportation

Stephen Byers: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many foreign nationals were given a custodial sentence followed by a recommendation for deportation in each of the last 10 years.

David Hanson: Information on the numbers of foreign nationals who were given a custodial sentence followed by a recommendation for deportation is not available and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.

Personal Records

Mark Hoban: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what  (a) budget and  (b) official facilities provision he has made for the review of the sharing and protection of personal information being led by Professor Mark Walport.

Michael Wills: The independent review of data sharing has a budget of 25,000 excluding staff costs. Neither Richard Thomas nor Doctor Mark Walport receive any remuneration for undertaking this review.
	The Ministry of Justice has provided office space, IT and communication facilities, and staff resources to support the review.

Personal Records

Mark Hoban: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many full-time officials from his Department are working on the review of the sharing and protection of personal information being led by Professor Mark Walport.

Michael Wills: Four full-time officials from my Department, including one who has been appointed but has not yet started, have been seconded to the review team.

Prisoner Escapes

Paul Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many absconders there have been from HMP  (a) Highdown and  (b) Downview in each of the last 10 years.

Maria Eagle: The number of incidents of prisoners absconding from  (a)Highdown, and  (b) Downview in each of the last 10 years where data have been published is shown in the following table. Those published data are also available for all prisons at the following link:
	http://www.hmprisonservice.gov.uk/abouttheservice/prisonperformance/performancestatistics/
	
		
			  Number 
			   HMP Highdown  HMP Downview 
			 1997-98 0 2 
			 1998-99 0 0 
			 1999-00 0 0 
			 2000-01 0 0 
			 2001-02 0 0 
			 2002-03 0 0 
			 2003-04 0 0 
			 2004-05 0 0 
			 2005-06 0 0 
			 2006-07 0 0 
			 Total 0 2

Prisoners

Jennifer Willott: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what the maximum capacity is of each secure accommodation site to hold prisoners serving a life sentence; and if he will make a statement.

David Hanson: The operational capacity for each establishment holding life sentenced prisoners is set out in the following table.
	
		
			  Prison  Operational capacity( 1) 
			 Acklington 882 
			 Albany 526 
			 Altcourse 1,288 
			 Ashwell 544 
			 Aylesbury 444 
			 Bedford 494 
			 Belmarsh 909 
			 Birmingham 1,450 
			 Blakenhurst 1,070 
			 Blantyre House 122 
			 Blundeston 466 
			 Bristol 606 
			 Brixton 798 
			 Buckley Hall 385 
			 Bullingdon 963 
			 Cardiff 754 
			 Channings Wood 731 
			 Chelmsford 695 
			 Coldingley 392 
			 Dartmoor 646 
			 Doncaster 1,146 
			 Dovegate 860 
			 Drake Hall 315 
			 Durham 981 
			 Elmley 985 
			 Erlestoke 410 
			 Exeter 533 
			 Featherstone 679 
			 Feltham 762 
			 Ford(2) 541 
			 Foston Hall 290 
			 Frankland 749 
			 Full Sutton 612 
			 Garth 812 
			 Gartree 575 
			 Grendon/Spring Hill 548 
			 Haverigg 635 
			 Highdown 925 
			 Highpoint 816 
			 Hollesley Bay(2) 330 
			 Holloway 501 
			 Holme House 994 
			 Hull 1,040 
			 Kingston 200 
			 Kirkham(2) 590 
			 Kirklevington Grange 223 
			 Leeds 1,000 
			 Lewes 558 
			 Leyhill(2) 512 
			 Lincoln 738 
			 Lindholme 1,102 
			 Littlehey 706 
			 Liverpool 1,439 
			 Long Lartin 464 
			 Low Newton 328 
			 Maidstone 482 
			 Manchester 1,269 
			 Moorland 791 
			 Mount 764 
			 New Hall 443 
			 North Sea Camp(2) 306 
			 Norwich 557 
			 Nottingham 550 
			 Parc 1,138 
			 Parkhurst 496 
			 Pentonville 1,152 
			 Peterborough 1,008 
			 Ranby 1,038 
			 Risley 1,095 
			 Rye Hill 600 
			 Send 216 
			 Shepton Mallet 189 
			 Standford Hill(2) 464 
			 Stocken 742 
			 Styal 448 
			 Sudbury(2) 571 
			 Swaleside 773 
			 Swinfen Hall 620 
			 Usk/Prescoed(2) 428 
			 Verne 595 
			 Wakefield 751 
			 Wandsworth 1,475 
			 Wayland 717 
			 Wealstun(2) 907 
			 Wellingborough 646 
			 Whatton 821 
			 Whitemoor 458 
			 Winchester 544 
			 Wolds 380 
			 Woodhill 807 
			 Wormwood Scrubs 1,256 
			 Wymott 1,062 
			 (1) As at 11 January 2008. (2) Denotes open prisons. 
		
	
	The table includes only those establishments holding 10 or more life sentenced prisoners.
	Operational capacity for establishments is the total number of prisoners that an establishment can hold taking into account control, security and the proper operation of the planned regime.
	The capacity provided is for all prisoners held at these establishments including non-life sentenced prisoners.

Prisoners

Jennifer Willott: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many and what proportion of the prison population were serving a life sentence in each year since 2000, in each secure accommodation site; and if he will make a statement.

David Hanson: The numbers and proportions of life sentenced prisoners held in each prison establishment in England and Wales as at 30 June in each year from 2000-07 are in the following table.
	These figures have been drawn from administrative IT systems, which, as with any large scale recording system, are subject to possible errors with data entry and processing.
	
		
			  Lifer population as at 30 June, by establishment and year 
			   June 2002  June 2003  June 2004 
			   Number of lifers  Percentage of total population  Number of lifers  Percentage of total population  Number of lifers  Percentage of total population 
			 Total lifer population 5,100 7 5,400 7 5,600 8 
			
			 Acklington 35 5 30 4 25 3 
			 Albany 110 25 110 22 110 22 
			 Ashwell 60 12 60 11 50 9 
			 Aylesbury 35 10 35 10 40 11 
			 Belmarsh 35 4 40 4 55 6 
			 Birmingham 10 1 10 1 15 1 
			 Blantyre House 30 23 30 25 30 26 
			 Blundeston 10 2 20 4 25 6 
			 Bristol 60 10 55 10 70 12 
			 Bullingdon 10 1 10 1 15 2 
			 Cardiff 20 3 60 9 70 10 
			 Channings Wood 50 8 55 9 50 7 
			 Coldingly 40 11 35 10 40 11 
			 Cookham Wood 15 9 10 8 15 11 
			 Dartmoor 25 4 20 3 15 3 
			 Doncaster 10 1 20 2 10 1 
			 Dovegate 80 11 110 13 155 19 
			 Durham 50 7 65 9 55 8 
			 Elmley 10 1 20 2 15 2 
			 Erlestoke 30 9 25 7 35 8 
			 Featherstone 20 3 15 2 20 3 
			 Ford 55 10 50 9 50 10 
			 Foston Hall 15 7 30 13 30 13 
			 Frankland 235 37 260 40 270 40 
			 Full Sutton 260 44 250 42 270 45 
			 Garth 65 10 70 11 85 13 
			 Gartree 275 100 275 100 400 99 
			 Grendon (Spring Hill) 115 25 125 23 135 26 
			 Haverigg 15 2 10 2 15 3 
			 Highpoint 45 5 35 5 35 5 
			 Hollesley Bay (Warren Hill) 45 10 35 13 30 11 
			 Holloway 10 2 10 2 10 2 
			 Kingston (Portsmouth) 180 100 185 100 135 100 
			 Kirkham 30 5 35 6 30 6 
			 Leeds 15 1 20 2 20 1 
			 Leyhill 145 33 130 25 130 25 
			 Lindholme 50 7 50 7 50 7 
			 Littlehey 65 10 70 10 60 9 
			 Liverpool 50 3 100 7 105 7 
			 Long Lartin 205 47 200 46 200 45 
			 Maidstone 110 24 25 4 25 4 
			 Manchester 75 6 135 10 115 9 
			 Moorland 30 4 40 5 40 5 
			 Mount 20 3 25 3 20 3 
			 North Sea Camp 30 13 45 16 55 19 
			 Norwich 15 2 15 2 10 2 
			 Nottingham 15 3 20 4 20 3 
			 Parkhurst 85 16 75 15 50 10 
			 Pentonville 10 1 15 1 15 1 
			 Preston 20 3 20 3 10 2 
			 Ranby 25 3 25 3 15 2 
			 Risley 10 1 30 3 45 4 
			 Rye Hill 115 18 115 18 120 18 
			 Shepton Mallet 120 67 180 99 185 100 
			 Standford Hill 25 6 25 5 20 5 
			 Stocken 65 11 55 9 45 8 
			 Styal 20 5 20 5 20 4 
			 Sudbury 75 14 85 16 85 15 
			 Swaleside 290 37 340 44 335 44 
			 Swinfen Hall 35 11 45 14 35 8 
			 Usk (Prescoed) 20 6 25 7 40 9 
			 Verne 70 12 45 8 35 6 
			 Wakefield 385 68 370 66 395 73 
			 Wandsworth 15 1 20 1 20 1 
			 Wayland 45 7 40 6 35 5 
			 Wealstun 25 4 25 4 20 3 
			 Wellingborough 55 10 40 7 30 6 
			 Whitemoor 185 44 200 49 210 51 
			 Winchester 20 3 15 2 25 4 
			 Woodhill 35 5 20 3 20 2 
			 Wymott 50 6 40 5 40 4 
		
	
	
		
			   June 2005  June 2006  June 2007 
			   Number of lifers  Percentage of total population  Number of lifers  Percentage of total population  Number of lifers  Percentage of total population 
			 Total lifer population 5,900 8 6,300 8 6,800 9 
			
			 Acklington 35 4 25 3 30 4 
			 Albany 100 19 115 21 110 21 
			 Ashwell 50 10 55 10 65 12 
			 Aylesbury 50 12 50 12 50 11 
			 Belmarsh 70 8 95 11 85 10 
			 Birmingham 25 2 40 3 30 2 
			 Blantyre House 35 29 35 28 30 26 
			 Blundeston 30 7 40 9 40 9 
			 Bristol 90 16 45 8 55 9 
			 Bullingdon 15 2 15 1 25 3 
			 Cardiff 95 12 95 13 90 12 
			 Channings Wood 35 5 35 6 35 6 
			 Coldingly 35 10 35 10 45 12 
			 Cookham Wood 15 10 20 10 15 9 
			 Dartmoor 25 4 20 3 20 3 
			 Doncaster 10 1 20 2 15 1 
			 Dovegate 210 27 225 28 215 26 
			 Durham 10 1 10 1 25 3 
			 Elmley 20 2 50 5 35 3 
			 Erlestoke 30 7 30 7 40 9 
			 Featherstone 20 3 20 3 30 5 
			 Ford 50 9 45 11 30 6 
			 Foston Hall 25 11 30 13 35 15 
			 Frankland 325 46 340 49 380 52 
			 Full Sutton 280 47 280 49 290 51 
			 Garth 95 15 95 16 140 23 
			 Gartree 435 100 445 96 475 85 
			 Grendon (Spring Hill) 140 26 140 25 150 28 
			 Haverigg 15 2 15 2 20 4 
			 Highpoint 35 4 35 4 40 5 
			 Hollesley Bay (Warren Hill) 25 8 15 7 20 7 
			 Holloway 15 3 30 6 30 7 
			 Kingston (Portsmouth) 190 100 190 100 200 100 
			 Kirkham 30 6 30 7 35 7 
			 Leeds 35 3 30 3 45 5 
			 Leyhill 110 21 110 33 105 25 
			 Lindholme 60 7 75 9 70 7 
			 Littlehey 60 8 55 8 70 10 
			 Liverpool 90 6 80 6 40 3 
			 Long Lartin 210 48 225 51 250 57 
			 Maidstone 20 4 20 3 25 4 
			 Manchester 100 8 110 9 90 7 
			 Moorland 35 4 45 6 45 6 
			 Mount 25 4 35 5 50 7 
			 North Sea Camp 55 19 45 17 30 11 
			 Norwich 35 4 35 4 40 7 
			 Nottingham 20 4 30 6 25 5 
			 Parkhurst 105 21 155 31 160 31 
			 Pentonville 15 1 15 1 15 1 
			 Preston 15 2 20 3 15 2 
			 Ranby 20 2 25 2 30 3 
			 Risley 45 4 45 4 60 6 
			 Rye Hill 95 16 95 17 110 18 
			 Shepton Mallet 180 100 180 100 185 100 
			 Standford Hill 25 5 15 4 20 5 
			 Stocken 50 8 60 9 70 12 
			 Styal 20 5 15 4 20 5 
			 Sudbury 85 15 80 14 65 12 
			 Swaleside 355 47 380 49 380 50 
			 Swinfen Hall 40 7 50 8 65 10 
			 Usk (Prescoed) 50 12 45 11 40 9 
			 Verne 50 9 40 7 60 10 
			 Wakefield 380 70 440 62 440 60 
			 Wandsworth 20 1 20 1 35 2 
			 Wayland 30 4 35 5 50 7 
			 Wealstun 15 2 20 3 15 2 
			 Wellingborough 30 5 45 7 60 10 
			 Whitemoor 235 54 250 59 285 61 
			 Winchester 20 3 20 2 20 4 
			 Woodhill 30 4 40 5 40 5 
			 Wymott 40 4 40 4 55 5 
			  Notes: 1. Total lifer population includes all establishments however the breakdown only includes those establishments with 10 or more lifers in each year. 2. Total population figures have been rounded to nearest 100; figures at establishment level are rounded to nearest 5.

Prisoners

Jennifer Willott: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many and what proportion of the prison population were serving an indeterminate sentence in each year since their introduction, in each secure accommodation site; and if he will make a statement.

David Hanson: The following table shows the number and proportion of prisoners serving sentences of imprisonment for public protection in each prison establishment as at 30 June in 2006 and 2007. Although sentences of imprisonment for public protection were introduced in April 2005, figures are not given for 30 June 2005 as there were very few sentenced prisoners serving these sentences at this time.
	These figures have been drawn from administrative IT systems, which, as with any large-scale recording system, are subject to possible errors with data entry and processing.
	
		
			  IPP population as at 30 June, by establishment and year 
			   June 2006  June 2007 
			   Number of IPPs  Percentage of total population  Number of IPPs  Percentage of total population 
			 Total IPP population 1,100 1 2,900 4 
			  
			 Altcourse 35 4 50 5 
			 Aylesbury 15 3 90 20 
			 Bedford 20 4 15 3 
			 Belmarsh 20 2 45 5 
			 Birmingham 45 3 75 5 
			 Blakenhurst 35 3 50 5 
			 Bristol 20 3 30 5 
			 Brixton 20 2 45 6 
			 Bullingdon 15 2 35 4 
			 Cardiff 25 3 55 8 
			 Castington 15 4 30 8 
			 Chelmsford 15 3 30 4 
			 Doncaster 40 3 50 4 
			 Durham 35 4 70 7 
			 Elmley 20 2 15 1 
			 Exeter 20 4 30 6 
			 Feltham 15 3 30 5 
			 Forest Bank 20 2 35 3 
			 Gartree 20 4 90 16 
			 Highdown 10 2 40 5 
			 Holloway 10 2 10 2 
			 Holme House 10 1 50 5 
			 Hull 25 3 45 4 
			 Lancaster Farms 25 5 20 4 
			 Leeds 35 3 60 6 
			 Leicester 10 2 10 3 
			 Lincoln 15 4 10 2 
			 Liverpool 35 3 80 6 
			 Low Newton 10 3 15 7 
			 Manchester 45 3 105 9 
			 Norwich 20 2 35 6 
			 Nottingham 30 6 40 7 
			 Parc 25 3 45 4 
			 Parkhurst 30 6 135 27 
			 Pentonville 15 1 50 4 
			 Peterborough 10 1 30 3 
			 Preston 25 4 45 6 
			 Swaleside 10 1 150 20 
			 Swansea 20 4 25 6 
			 Swinfen Hall 25 4 90 14 
			 Wakefield 10 2 35 5 
			 Wandsworth 15 1 75 5 
			 Winchester 35 5 25 5 
			 Woodhill 30 4 30 4 
			 Wormwood Scrubs 15 1 30 2 
			  Notes: 1. Total IPP population includes all establishments, however, the breakdown only includes those establishments with 10 or more IPPs in each year. 2. Total population figures have been rounded to nearest 100; figures at establishment level are rounded to nearest 5.

Prisoners

Jennifer Willott: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many and what proportion of the prison population are being detained as a result of probation recall in  (a) total and  (b) each region; and if he will make a statement.

David Hanson: The following table shows the number and proportion of recalled prisoners in prison establishments in England and Wales as at 30 November 2007:
	
		
			   Recall population  As a percentage of the total prison population 
			 North East 394 10 
			 North West 594 7 
			 Yorkshire and Humberside 539 8 
			 Wales 117 8 
			 West Midlands 513 8 
			 East Midlands 699 8 
			 Eastern 428 7 
			 South West 492 8 
			 South Central 329 5 
			 London 333 6 
			 Kent and Sussex 208 4 
			 High Security 222 4 
			 Contracted Prisons 540 6 
			 Total 5,407 7 
			  Notes: 1. The total prison population includes the remand population (untried and convicted unsentenced), sentenced prison population (including fine defaulters) and non-criminal prisoners. 2. These figures have been drawn from administrative IT systems, which, as with any large scale recording system, are subject to possible errors with data entry and processing.

Prisoners Release

Stephen Byers: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many people who had been in prison for  (a) more than 10 years,  (b) between five and 10 years,  (c) between two and five years and  (d) between one and two years were released in each of the last 10 years.

David Hanson: The following table gives the available information on the numbers of persons discharged, by original sentence length band, for adult (aged 21 and over) and young offender (aged 18 to 20) prisoners released between 1997 and 2006 from all prison establishments in England and Wales. These figures were taken from tables 3.13 and 4.11 in the annual prison statistics England and Wales for data relating to 1997 to 2002 and from table 10.1 and 10.2 in the annual Offender Management Caseload Statistics for data relating to 2003 to 2006. The published tables also indicate the average time served within these bands. Copies of these publications can be found in the House of Commons Library and at the websites:
	http://www.homeoffice. gov.uk/rds/omcs.html
	and
	http://www.justice.gov.uk/publications/prisonandprobation.htm
	These figures have been drawn from administrative IT systems, which, as with any large scale recording system, are subject to possible errors with data entry and processing.
	
		
			  Number of persons discharged from prisons( 1) , by length of determinate sentence, on completion of sentence or on licence 1997 to 2006: England and Wales 
			  Number 
			  Sentence length  1997  1998  1999  2000  2001  2002  2003  2004  2005  2006 
			  Adult males and females  
			 All lengths of sentence less than indeterminate 58,000 65,300 71,300 68,430 65,805 69,899 69,611 71,000 70,500 65,900 
			 Up to and including 3 months 17,650 20,050 21,800 18,700 18,247 18,224 17,255 18,100 17,800 16,300 
			 Over 3 months up to and including 6 months 15,850 17,250 19,150 18,110 17,769 19,239 19,532 19,900 18,900 17,900 
			 Over 6 months less than 12 months 5,100 5,700 5,950 6,150 5,696 6,075 5,917 6,200 6,100 6,200 
			 12 months 3,350 3,550 3,600 3,190 2,984 3,144 2,954 3,000 3,000 2,800 
			 Over 12 months up to and including 18 months 4,500 5,000 4,950 5,220 4,704 5,127 5,062 4,800 4,900 4,600 
			 Over 18 months up to and including 3 years 7,450 8,250 9,050 9,150 8,530 9,582 9,895 9,400 9,500 8,900 
			 Over 3 years less than 4 years 650 1,050 1,450 1,940 1,907 2,298 2,708 2,700 2,900 2,700 
			 4 years 1,000 1,350 1,550 1,600 1,375 1,477 1,547 1,600 1,700 1,400 
			 Over 4 years up to and including 5 years 950 1,300 1,600 1,830 1,859 1,938 1,948 2,300 2,400 2,200 
			 Over 5 years up to and including 10 years 1,350 1,600 1,950 2,300 2,435 2,518 2,471 2,600 2,800 2,700 
			 Over 10 years less than indeterminate 180 250 250 240 299 277 322 400 400 300 
			
			  Young offenders males and females 
			 All lengths of sentence less than indeterminate 15,450 18,130 20,130 18,112 15,642 16,914 15,459 14,700 14,500 12,500 
			 Up to and including 3 months 3,510 4,980 5,930 4,196 3,513 3,103 2,796 2,700 2,800 2,800 
			 Over 3 months up to and including 6 months 4,220 5,100 5,730 5,935 5,256 5,645 5,051 5,100 5,000 4,700 
			 Over 6 months less than 12 months 2,060 2,030 2,070 2,120 1,849 2,324 1,929 1,900 1,900 1,900 
			 12 months 1,140 1,280 1,230 1,121 1,138 1,400 1,268 1,200 1,200 700 
			 Over 12 months up to and including 18 months 1,700 1,780 1,830 1,623 1,367 1,716 1,590 1,400 1,300 700 
			 Over 18 months less than life 2,790 2,950 3,340 3,117 2,519 2,726 2,825 2,400 2,400 1,500 
			 (1) Excludes discharges following recall after release on licence, non-criminals, persons committed to custody for non-payment of a fine and persons reclassified as adult prisoners.  Note: Additions may not add to totals because they have been rounded separately.

TREASURY

Academies

Mark Hoban: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer 
	(1)  if he will make a statement on the progress of the review of academy schools by the Number 10 Delivery Unit;
	(2)  what the names are of all those who have worked for the Prime Minister's Delivery Unit in the last 12 months;
	(3)  whether a copy of the review of academy schools by the Prime Minister's Delivery Unit will be made publicly available;
	(4)  when the Prime Minister's Delivery Unit review of academy schools will report;
	(5)  how many people are working on the Prime Minister's Delivery Unit review of academy schools;
	(6)  what the timescale is for the Prime Minister's Delivery Unit review of academy schools.

Andy Burnham: I refer the hon. Member to the answer the Minister of State for Children, Schools and Families gave to the hon. Member for Yeovil (Mr. Laws) on 19 November 2007,  Official Report, column 624W and also to the remarks made on the Floor of the House by the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families on 13 November 2007 , Official Report, columns 561-62. PMDU reviews are confidential advice to Ministers; we do not disclose the recommendations or publish the report.
	The review of the academies programme is being jointly led by a number of officials in the Prime Minister's Delivery Unit in partnership with Treasury and DCSF officials in the Academies and Capitals Group of the Department. The serving Director of the Prime Minister's Delivery Unit is Richard Page-Jones and Ray Shostak is the Head of the Unit.

Carbon Markets Expert Group

Mark Hoban: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer 
	(1)  pursuant to the answer of 13 December 2007,  Official Report, column 809W, on Carbon Markets Expert Group, when invitations will be issued to prospective members of the group; and by what date answers will be requested;
	(2)  what experience will be required of members of the Carbon Markets Expert Group.

Angela Eagle: Invitations were issued to 16 prospective members of the group on 19 December 2007, and answers were requested by 5 January 2008. Members have been selected in order to bring experience of a wide range of issues related to carbon markets and emissions trading, including investment banking, trading, brokerage, project credit development, and related professional services. The members are from the following firms:
	Barclays Capital;
	Cameo Global;
	Cantor CO2e;
	CEAG (Consilience Energy Advisory Group);
	Citigroup;
	Climate Change Capital;
	Ecosecurities;
	European Climate Exchange;
	JP Morgan;
	KPMG;
	Lehman Brothers;
	Merrill Lynch;
	Morgan Stanley;
	Natsource;
	TFS;
	UBS.

Delivery Services

Jim Cousins: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what outsourced couriers and postal service providers HM Revenue and Customs has used since 2005-06; and how much was paid to such providers in  (a) 2005-06,  (b) 2006-07 and  (c) 2007-08.

Jane Kennedy: holding answer 6 December 2007
	For the year April 2006 to March 2007, HMRC handled approximately 300 million pieces of outgoing post.
	HM Revenue and Customs postal and courier services are supplied by Royal Mail; TNT UK Ltd.; G4S; Lynx International Ltd. and the DX Group Ltd.
	The amounts paid to these providers since 2005-06 to date is as follows:
	
		
			
			 2005-06 86,000,000 
			 2006-07 86,000,000 
			 April 2007 to November 2007 54,000,000 
			  Note: Amounts rounded to the nearest million.

Delivery Services

Philip Hammond: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what proportion of total mail deliveries made on behalf of his Department and its agencies were carried out by mail carriers employed by HM Revenue and Customs in the last 12 months.

Angela Eagle: holding answer 3 December 2007
	68.5 per cent. of official mail deliveries from the Treasury building at 1 Horse Guards road in 2007 were carried out by mail carriers also employed by HM Revenue and Customs.

Departmental Christmas

Francis Maude: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether  (a) his Department and  (b) HM Revenue and Customs will hold a (i) Christmas pantomime or similar production and (ii) Christmas party in 2007.

Angela Eagle: Neither the Treasury nor HMRC held a Christmas party or Christmas pantomime in 2007.

Departmental Data Protection

Mark Hoban: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many times the police have investigated security breaches in agencies of his Department in the last five years.

Angela Eagle: There has been only one police investigation of an information security breach in the past five years.

Departmental Data Protection

Mark Hoban: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many discrete physical searches there have been in his Department for missing data discs in the last 12 months.

Jane Kennedy: Information on the total number of discrete physical searches that have been conducted for missing data discs is not available centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Departmental Data Protection

Mark Hoban: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what estimate his Department has made of the number of discs containing data protected by the Data Protection Act 1998 that were sent to the National Audit Office in the last 12 months.

Jane Kennedy: This information is not available and could be collated only at a disproportionate cost.

Departmental Ministerial Policy Advisors

Mark Hoban: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether any of his Department's special advisers have outside appointments.

Angela Eagle: Special advisers are appointed under terms and conditions set out in the Model Contract and Code of Conduct for Special Advisers, copies of which are in the Library of the House.

Departmental Public Bodies

Theresa May: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer for which regulators and inspectorates his Department has had responsibility in each year since 1997; what the budget was of each such body in each year; and what the cost to the public purse was of any restructuring of each such body in each year.

Angela Eagle: The Treasury has not had responsibility for any publicly funded regulators or inspectorates in any year since 1997.

Departmental Recycling

Brian Jenkins: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what weight of paper his Department recycled in each of the last five years.

Angela Eagle: The weight of paper in metric tonnes recycled from the Treasury building in 1 Horse Guards road in each of the last five years was:
	
		
			   Tonnes 
			 2003 116.3829 
			 2004 179.1666 
			 2005 156.4906 
			 2006 138.2113 
			 2007 171.4356

Dismissal

Jim Cousins: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many HM Revenue and Customs staff in  (a) total,  (b) England,  (c) Scotland,  (d) Wales,  (e) Northern Ireland and  (f) each region of England were dismissed because of (i) their attendance record and (ii) their attendance record on grounds of sickness in each year since 2005.

Jane Kennedy: The total numbers of HM Revenue and Customs staff dismissed since 1 April 2005 are shown in the following table. Records of the reasons for dismissal are not held centrally and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.
	
		
			  Region/country  2005-06  2006-07  2007-08 to date 
			 East 19 14 21 
			 East Midlands 22 16 15 
			 London 33 25 22 
			 North East 86 59 34 
			 North West 89 70 55 
			 South East 44 34 16 
			 South West 20 13 18 
			 West Midlands 25 20 18 
			 Yorkshire and Humberside 54 23 12 
			 
			 England 392 274 211 
			 Northern Ireland 8 9 9 
			 Scotland 73 68 42 
			 Wales 22 18 17 
			 
			 Total 495 369 279

Excise Duties: Fuels

Angus MacNeil: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will consider derogating from EU regulations, as negotiated by the French Government, to enable a reduction in fuel duty in rural areas by three per cent. until 2011, with particular reference to the Scottish islands.

Alistair Carmichael: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what consideration he has given to implementing a scheme whereby those living in rural and remote areas with extremely high dependence upon cars are allowed preferential rates of fuel duty.

Angela Eagle: Fuel duty helps the Government meet their objectives of reducing polluting emissions and funding public services. A derogation to alter fuel duty rates in this way would have to be carefully considered in the light of the above objectives as well as administrative and fraud considerations and the Government have no current plans to seek one.

Interest Rates

David Willetts: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what the  (a) net and  (b) gross (i) household and (ii) national savings rate was (A) quarterly and (B) annually in each year for which data is available.

Angela Eagle: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the National Statistician, who has been asked to reply.
	 Letter from Karen Dunnell, dated 16 January 2008:
	As National Statistician I have been asked to reply to your question on what (a) the net and (b) the gross rate of (i) household and (ii) national savings was quarterly and annually in each year for which data is available. (171918)
	Data for this are shown in the table below. In the UK National Accounts, following international guidelines, the household sector is combined with the non-profit institutions serving households sector (NPISH), and it is not possible to separate the two. Examples of institutions included within the NPISH sector are: charities; trade unions, universities, churches and political parties.
	An estimate of a UK national saving ratio is not published but has been derived using UK gross saving and UK gross national income as the denominator.
	Quarterly estimates of net saving are not published so only annual estimates are shown back to 1987. Net saving is calculated as gross saving less the consumption of fixed capital.
	Data on gross saving, consumption of fixed capital, net saving, and gross and net saving ratios for the households and NPISH sector are shown in Table 1 below annually back to 1987. The household saving ratio is available back to 1948 annually and 1955 quarterly.
	Data on gross saving, consumption of fixed capital, net saving, and gross and net saving ratios for the UK are shown in Table 2 below annually back to 1987, data before this time is not available.
	
		
			  Table 1: Gross and net savings for the household and NPISH sector 
			million  Percentage 
			   Gross saving (NSSH)  Consumption of fixed capital (QWLL)  Net saving  Gross saving ratio (RVGL)  Net saving ratio 
			 1987 17673 12545 5128 6.4 1.9 
			 1988 15071 14760 311 4.9 0.1 
			 1989 22980 15390 7590 6.7 2.2 
			 1990 30393 16935 13458 8.0 3.6 
			 1991 42262 17750 24512 10.3 6.0 
			 1992 51376 17117 34259 11.7 7.8 
			 1993 49820 18066 31754 10.7 6.8 
			 1994 44836 19025 25811 9.3 5.4 
			 1995 51790 20087 31703 10.2 6.2 
			 1996 51183 21756 29427 9.4 5.4 
			 1997 54390 23704 30686 9.5 5.3 
			 1998 41844 25053 16791 7.0 2.8 
			 1999 33136 27976 5160 5.3 0.8 
			 2000 33584 30517 3067 5.1 0.5 
			 2001 45137 32909 12228 6.4 1.7 
			 2002 36301 36043 258 5.0 0.0 
			 2003 37421 36903 518 4.9 0.1 
			 2004 29307 42366 -13059 3.7 -1.7 
			 2005 46745 42623 4122 5.6 0.5 
			 2006 43840 42877 953 5.0 0.1 
		
	
	
		
			  Table 2: Gross and net savings for the UK 
			million  Percentage 
			   Gross saving (NQET)  Consumption of fixed capital (NQAE)  Net saving (NQET)  Gross saving ratio  Net saving ratio 
			 1987 73904 55248 18656 17.7 4.5 
			 1988 82481 60488 21993 17.6 4.7 
			 1989 89833 65741 24092 17.5 4.7 
			 1990 92819 72787 20032 16.8 3.6 
			 1991 92152 78145 14007 15.8 2.4 
			 1992 89139 79331 9808 14.6 1.6 
			 1993 92538 81312 11226 14.4 1.8 
			 1994 108806 83649 25157 15.9 3.7 
			 1995 117281 86160 31121 16.3 4.3 
			 1996 125240 90145 35095 16.3 4.6 
			 1997 142061 91935 50126 17.4 6.1 
			 1998 158257 95051 63206 18.1 7.2 
			 1999 146294 101055 45239 16.1 5.0 
			 2000 147613 106372 41241 15.4 4.3 
			 2001 156483 110434 46049 15.5 4.6 
			 2002 167161 116007 51154 15.5 4.8 
			 2003 175725 119239 56486 15.4 5.0 
			 2004 187751 128427 59324 15.5 4.9 
			 2005 186347 131093 55254 14.8 4.4 
			 2006 191385 133936 57449 14.5 4.4 
			  Note: Quarterly data are only published for series listed as follows and can be downloaded from the ONS website http://www.statistics.gov.uk/ Household and NPISH Gross Saving (NSSH) Household and NPISH Gross Saving Ratio (RVGL) UK Gross Saving (NQET)  Source: UK National Accounts, the Blue Book 2007 http://www.statistics.gov.uk/statbase/Product.asp?vlnk=1143

Marginal Tax Rates

Mark Hoban: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer pursuant to the answer of 12 December 2007,  Official Report, column 617W, on marginal tax rates, what estimate he has made of the number of households which will experience marginal deduction rates of between  (a) 60 and 61 per cent. and  (b) 62 and 63 per cent. under the 2008-09 tax and benefits system.

Jane Kennedy: Estimates of the number of families facing marginal deduction rates above 60, 70, 80 and 90 per cent. under the 2008-09 tax and benefits system were published in the 2007 pre-Budget report and comprehensive spending review, table 5.2.
	These estimates are not sufficiently reliable to be broken down into narrower ranges for marginal deduction rates.

Members: Correspondence

Michael Spicer: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer when a reply will be sent to the hon. Member for West Worcestershire's letter of 9 November 2007 on capital gains tax and the loss of indexation allowance (PO reference: 1/52674/2007, HMT reference: 1154N 07/08).

Jane Kennedy: I have written to the hon. Member and regret not having done so earlier.

Young People

John Hayes: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many staff aged between 16 and 18 were employed by his Department  (a) directly and  (b) through an employment agency in each of the last 10 years; what proportion of these were given time off work to undertake some form of training; and what proportion were provided with some form of training (i) wholly and (ii) partially funded by his Department.

Angela Eagle: The number of staff aged between 16 and 18 recruited to the Department in each of the following years is:
	
		
			   Number 
			 1998 3 
			 1999 2 
			 2000 3 
			 2001 1 
			 2002 1 
			 2003 1 
			 2004 2 
			 2005 1 
			 2006 2 
			 2007 2 
		
	
	Provision for training is arranged locally by individual line managers, and central records are not kept on the amount of time or funding allocated to individuals.
	The Department does not hold any personal data of those working via an employment agency.

HEALTH

Accident and Emergency Departments: Admissions

Andrew Dismore: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what proportion of accident and emergency department admissions at  (a) Barnet and Chase Farm hospital,  (b) Royal Free hospital and  (c) Northwick Park hospital were seen, treated and discharged or admitted within target times set in the most recent period for which figures are available; what the equivalent figures were in 1997; what the (i) average and (ii) longest waiting time for treatment was in the last 12 months; and if he will make a statement.

Ben Bradshaw: The information is not available centrally in the format requested.
	Data is collected on the proportion of attendances at accident and emergency (A and E) departments that are seen and admitted, transferred or discharged within four hours of arrival. It is not possible to establish the proportion of patients who are admitted to hospital via A and E departments that were also seen, diagnosed and treated within four hours of arrival.
	Information is also not available at the level of individual hospitals. For 2006-07 and quarters 1 and 2 of 2007-08 the percentage of patients who were seen and admitted, transferred or discharged within four hours of their arrival at the relevant national health service trusts is shown in the following table. Data available on performance against the operational standard do not go back to 1997.
	
		
			  Percentage 
			   2006-07  2007-08 Q1  2007-08 Q2 
			 Barnet and Chase Farm hospitals NHS trust 97.5 99.1 99.2 
			 North West London hospitals NHS trust 97.1 97.5 97.8 
			 Royal Free Hampstead NHS trust 98.4 98.5 98.6 
			  Note: The Department collects A and E data at trust rather than hospital level. The table shows data for the relevant trusts. The Northwick Park hospital information is provided by North West London hospitals NHS trust.  Source: Department of Health dataset QMAE

Accident and Emergency Departments: Admissions

Andrew Dismore: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many attendances there were at  (a) Barnet Hospital accident and emergency department,  (b) Royal Free Hospital accident and emergency department and  (c) Edgware Hospital walk-in centre in (i) each of the last three years and (ii) 2007-08 to date; and if he will make a statement.

Ben Bradshaw: The information is not available centrally in the format requested, as data on accident and emergency (A and E) attendances are not collected at the level of individual hospitals and services.
	The following table shows the number of attendances at A and E departments for the relevant trusts for the requested years.
	
		
			   2004-05  2005-06  2006-07  2007-08 
			 Barnet and Chase Farm Hospitals NHS Trust 139,165 149,082 150,859 74,418 
			 Barnet PCT 77,124 88,787 95,263 46,563 
			 Royal Free Hampstead NHS Trust 75,949 78,411 77,228 38,635 
			  Note: The 2007-08 data include quarter 1 and quarter 2 only.  Source: Department of Health dataset QMAE 
		
	
	The Department collects A and E data at trust rather than hospital level, and the table shows data for the relevant trusts. The Edgware Hospital walk-in centre is provided by Barnet PCT.

Ambulance Services: Barnet

Andrew Dismore: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  what steps are being taken to improve emergency ambulance services in Barnet;
	(2)  what the  (a) target response time and  (b) average response time in the (i) last 12 months and (ii) in 2008 and  (c) longest response time in the (A) last 12 months and (B) 2007-08 for an NHS ambulance service call was in Barnet; and if he will make a statement.

Ben Bradshaw: It is for strategic health authorities (SHAs), as the local headquarters of the national health service, and primary care trusts, as commissioners, to ensure that national response time standards are delivered and maintained by ambulance trusts, and we understand that my hon. Friend has raised this directly with Barnet primary care trust.
	The Department implemented a 25 million capital incentive scheme during 2006-07. A similar scheme operated in 2004-05. Both schemes rewarded trusts who demonstrated improved levels of performance including response times.
	NHS ambulance trusts are required to meet the following response times:
	Category A (presenting conditions which may be immediately life threatening) calls should be responded to within eight minutes irrespective of location, in 75 per cent. of cases. All NHS ambulance trusts should respond to 95 per cent. of category A calls, with a vehicle capable of transporting the patient, within 19 minutes of the request for transport being made.
	Category B (presenting conditions which though serious are not immediately life threatening) calls should be responded to within 19 minutes in 95 per cent. of cases.
	Since 1 October 2004 local NHS organisations have had responsibility for managing and monitoring the ways in which local services respond to category C (presenting conditions which are not immediately serious or life threatening) calls.
	The data that the Department collect on ambulance response times is published on an annual basis in the statistical bulletin, Ambulance Services, England. The latest statistical bulletin, Ambulance Services, England, 2006-07 was published in June 2007.
	These documents are available in the Library and on the information centre for health and social care website:
	www.ic.nhs.uk/pubs

Ambulance Services: Expenditure

Daniel Kawczynski: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the cost of running the Ambulance Control Centre was in  (a) Shropshire and  (b) Warwickshire in (i) 2004 and (ii) 2006.

Ben Bradshaw: The information is not held centrally at the level of detail requested.
	However, NHS West Midlands strategic health authority has advised that locally held comparative management information for 2006-07 indicates that the Warwick (Leamington Spa) ambulance control centre was more efficient than the Shropshire (Shrewsbury) centre in terms of both cost per member of staff and cost per call dealt with. Management information of this nature is not audited by the Department and is designed for local analysis and decision making.

Barnet and Chase Farm Hospital

Andrew Dismore: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what progress has been made on the review of services at Barnet and Chase Farm hospital; and if he will make a statement.

Ben Bradshaw: The provision of services at Barnet and Chase Farm hospitals national health service trust is a matter for the local NHS.
	However, we have been informed that following formal public consultation, the boards of Barnet, Haringey and Enfield primary care trusts decided on 12 December 2007 to proceed with option 1 as proposed in the Barnet, Enfield and Haringey Clinical Strategy. This proposes that Chase Farm hospital becomes an elective surgery centre, with emergency care moving to Barnet and North Middlesex hospitals.

Breast Cancer: Screening

Andrew Dismore: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  what progress is being made on the breast screening service in Barnet; what estimate he has made of how long it will take to clear outstanding cases; and if he will make a statement;
	(2)  what progress has been made on breast cancer screening for Hendon residents.

Ben Bradshaw: London strategic health authority (SHA) has advised that the North London Breast Screening Service, which provides services to Barnet and Hendon residents, was suspended for safety reasons in December 2006. The service resumed in May 2007, and was reintroduced gradually. As of October 2007, there were no outstanding cases and the service is running to full capacity.

Cancer: Barnet

Andrew Dismore: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many and what proportion of cancer patients in Barnet were  (a) seen and  (b) treated within the target time of (i) one month from diagnosis to treatment and (ii) two months for urgent GP referral to treatment; what the performance of (A) Barnet Chase Farm and (B) Royal Free hospitals was in each category; and if he will make a statement.

Ben Bradshaw: The information requested for quarter 2 of 2007-08 is as follows:
	 One month (31-day) diagnosis to treatment standard (quarter 2 2007-08):
	Barnet and Chase Farm Hospitals NHS Trust: 100 per cent.
	Royal Free Hampstead NHS Trust: 100 per cent.
	 Two month (62-day) urgent general practitioner referral to treatment standard (quarter 2 2007-08):
	Barnet and Chase Farm Hospitals NHS Trust: 98.2 per cent.
	Royal Free Hampstead NHS Trust: 96.9 per cent.

Chiropody: Stoke-on-Trent

Robert Flello: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment he has made of the availability of NHS chiropody services for pensioners in Stoke-on-Trent; and if he will make a statement.

Dawn Primarolo: It is for primary care trusts in partnership with local stakeholders to determine how best to use their funds to meet national and local priorities for improving health, outlined in the national service frameworks, and to commission services accordingly. This process provides the means for addressing local needs within the health community, including the provision of chiropody.

Chlamydia: Screening

Andrew Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many  (a) men and  (b) women were screened by each local Chlamydia screening programme in (i) 2005-06 and (ii) 2006-07.

Dawn Primarolo: The information requested is shown in the following tables. The programme was rolled out to primary care trusts (PCTs) in a phased way. The introduction of the programme in all PCTs is currently being completed. At the end of September 2007, we had 65 programme areas reporting data to the Health Protection Agency.
	
		
			  Number of men and women screened for Chlamydia within each programme area, 2005-06 
			  Programme area  Males  Females  Total 
			 Birmingham 532 4,582 5,114 
			 Brent and Harrow 548 1,882 2,430 
			 Brighton 1,049 4,603 5,652 
			 Camden and Islington 145 3,070 3,215 
			 Cornwall 1,988 4,167 6,155 
			 Coventry 153 1,102 1,255 
			 Durham and Teeside 1,656 2,794 4,450 
			 East Cheshire 426 2,958 3,384 
			 East Kent 638 2,621 3,259 
			 East Yorkshire 145 200 345 
			 Enfield and Haringey 123 1,366 1,489 
			 Hull 556 2,405 2,961 
			 Lambeth and Southwark 781 6,158 6,939 
			 Leeds 1,275 3,287 4,562 
			 Lewisham 817 3,471 4,288 
			 Liverpool 1,455 9,541 10,996 
			 Luton and Bedfordshire 302 1,314 1,616 
			 Milton Keynes 18 114 132 
			 Norfolk and Waveney 428 2,057 2,485 
			 Nottingham City 629 5,775 6,404 
			 Portsmouth 286 4,757 5,043 
			 South East Essex 133 1,886 2,019 
			 Sheffield 541 3,292 3,833 
			 Berkshire East 1,013 1,330 2,343 
			 Stoke (North Staffordshire) 605 2,573 3,178 
			 West Cheshire 130 1,452 1,582 
			 Winchesternow Hampshire 1,380 2,435 3,815 
			 Wirral 406 3,612 4,018 
			 York 292 1,752 2,044 
			  Note: Total includes records where sex is unknown/not specified. Consequently, males and females may not add up to total.  Source: The National Chlamydia Screening Programme. Data as of 17 December 2007. 
		
	
	
		
			  Number of men and women screened for Chlamydia within each programme area, 2006-07 
			  Programme area  Males  Females  Total 
			 Ashfield 13 15 28 
			 Birmingham 780 5,956 6,736 
			 Bournemouth and Poole 234 459 694 
			 Bradford and Craven 181 867 1,048 
			 Brent and Harrow 500 1,753 2,253 
			 Brighton 1,001 4,735 5,736 
			 Buckinghamshire (1) (1) 14 
			 Cambridge and Peterborough 440 991 1,431 
			 Camden and Islington 246 3,158 3,404 
			 Central Lancashire 176 1,202 1,378 
			 Cornwall 2,787 5,289 8,076 
			 Coventry 345 1,563 1,908 
			 Dorset 362 232 594 
			 Durham and Teeside 3,797 3,335 7,132 
			 East Cheshire 536 3,386 3,934 
			 East Kent 583 2,617 3,200 
			 East Lancashire 105 377 482 
			 East Yorkshire 283 474 757 
			 Enfield and Haringey 363 1,511 1,874 
			 Greater Manchester 1,336 6,530 7,925 
			 Hastings 108 424 532 
			 Hounslow 58 176 234 
			 Hull 633 3,035 3,668 
			 Lambeth and Southwark 1,506 7,847 9,353 
			 Leeds 1,472 4,037 5,509 
			 Leicester 44 167 213 
			 Lewisham 1,157 5,341 6,498 
			 Liverpool 1,646 9,809 11,509 
			 Luton and Bedfordshire 453 1,556 2,011 
			 Milton Keynes 532 2,261 2,793 
			 Northumberland, Tyne and Wear 446 759 1,205 
			 Norfolk and Waveney 552 1,987 2,539 
			 Northern Lincolnshire 42 90 132 
			 Nottingham City 822 5,953 6,775 
			 Portsmouth 560 4,237 4,797 
			 Plymouth (1) (1) (1) 
			 South East Essex 266 2,137 2,403 
			 Sheffield 802 4,234 5,036 
			 Berkshire East 1,201 1,444 2,645 
			 South Staffordshire 43 306 349 
			 Southampton 103 289 392 
			 Stoke (North Staffordshire) 647 3,589 4,236 
			 Suffolk 160 1,033 1,193 
			 West Cheshire 137 1,640 1,777 
			 West Kent 307 1,472 1,780 
			 West Sussex 17 26 44 
			 Western Wakefield 46 290 336 
			 Winchester - now Hampshire 2,283 3,508 5,791 
			 Wirral 726 4,516 5,256 
			 York 1,064 2,508 3,572 
			 (1 )Cell size of one to four have been masked to protect deductive disclosure in accordance with Office for National Statistics guidelines.  Note: 1. Total includes records where sex is unknown/not specified. Consequently, males and females may not add up to total. 2. The data from the NCSP are screens outside of genito-urinary medicine. 3. The data available from the NCSP are the number of screens and not the number of people screened. 4. The data only include those aged 13-24.  Source: The National Chlamydia Screening Programme (NCSP). Data as of 17 December 2007.

Contraception: Hampshire

Sandra Gidley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many NHS community contraception clinics there are in  (a) Hampshire,  (b) Southampton and  (c) Southern Test Valley.

Dawn Primarolo: The information is not held in the format requested.
	Primary care trusts are responsible for commissioning services to meet the needs of the communities they serve. This includes the provision of community contraception clinics.

Contraception: Young People

Sandra Gidley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what information is provided for  (a) boys and  (b) girls aged between 13 and 15 on the services provided by NHS community contraception clinics.

Dawn Primarolo: The recommended standards for sexual health services advise that primary care trusts (PCTs) should ensure information about local sexual health service provision is readily available to enable people to access appropriate services. It also states that PCTs should target specific population groups who are less well serviced by, or find it more difficult to access existing provision. Specific service provision will be based on local need but should include services for young people.
	In addition, sex and relationships education guidance from the Department for Children, Schools and Families recommends that young people should be given information on where they can access local contraceptive advice services. In order to achieve healthy school status arrangements must be in place to refer students to specialist services that can provide advice on contraception including community contraceptive services.

Departmental Expenditure

Andrew Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the answer of 3 December 2007,  Official Report, column 996W, on departmental expenditure, what written guidance documents were provided by the finance directorate; and if he will place in the Library a copy of the note entitled Financial Planning and CSR2007.

Ben Bradshaw: As was the case in previous Administrations it is not Government practice to put internal guidance documents in the public domain.

Departmental Expenditure

Andrew Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to paragraph 6.2 of his Department's resource accounts for 2006-07, on which local authority schemes there was slippage; and for each such scheme what costs arose from such slippage.

Ben Bradshaw: The information is not collected centrally. It is for strategic health authorities working with national health service organisations in their economy, to agree and monitor detailed plans for both revenue and capital investment with local authorities.

Departmental Expenditure

Andrew Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to paragraph 6.4 of his Department's resource accounts for 2006-07, for what reasons his Department underspent its non-cash budget by 490 million.

Ben Bradshaw: The 490 million non-cash underspend relates to non-cash resources held in the departmental unallocated provision. This was set aside to cover unplanned non-cash expenditure but was not needed during 2006-07.

Departmental Expenditure

Andrew Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to paragraph 4.34 of the NHS in England's Operating Framework for 2008-09, if he will break down the 5,859 million from central budgets to be devolved to strategic health authorities.

Ben Bradshaw: The allocation of the 2008-09 strategic health authorities (SHAs) bundle of central budgets to be devolved to SHAs for their local management is currently being finalised, taking account of views from SHA representatives, but will provisionally include funding to support the following areas:
	PMEDs: Personal Administration Costs for Non Dispensing Doctors
	Securing Recombinant Clotting Factors
	Childhood Vaccination
	Training and Co-ordination for End of Life Care
	Cancer Network Support
	Genetics White Paper services
	Revenue Support
	Executive Leadership Development
	High Security Infectious Disease Units
	National Artificial Eye Service
	London Ambulance Service
	National Intensive Care Bed Register
	Choose and Book Appointments Line
	Hospital Chaplaincy
	Olympics support
	Student Bursaries/Multi-professional education and training (MPET)/MPET levy
	Getting Ahead of the Curve Public Health Laboratory Service
	High Cost Area Adjustment
	Heart Improvement
	National Screening ProgrammesPilots and Quality Management.
	Diabetes
	Rare ConditionsBurns
	Cancer Related Training including Endoscopy
	Training and Co-ordination for End of Life Care
	Cancer Peer Review
	National Cancer Programme - central support
	National Cancer Screening Management
	Primary Care Trust Commissioning Development and Fitness for Purpose Programme
	Mental Health Choice and Inclusion
	Care Services Improvement Partnership
	Community Equipment
	Mental Capacity Act
	New General Medical Services Contract fees for Dispensing Doctors
	Local Pharmaceutical Services
	Clinical Excellence Awards
	Community and Prison Drug Treatment
	Prison healthcare payments to Home Office
	Dangerous People with Severe Personality Disorders
	Independent Sector Treatment Centres
	NHS Direct non contestable core services

Departmental Regulation

Theresa May: To ask the Secretary of State for Health for which regulators and inspectorates his Department has had responsibility in each year since 1997; what the budget was of each such body in each year; and what the cost to the public purse was of any restructuring of each such body in each year.

Ben Bradshaw: Information on the Department's Public Bodies, including their remit and budget, is published annually by the Cabinet Office in the Public Bodies Directory. This is available at:
	www.civilservice.gov.uk/other/agencies/public_bodies/index.asp
	The directory for each year from 1998 to 2006 is currently available and the 2007 directory will be available shortly.
	The information on the cost of restructurings is not held centrally and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.

Developing Patient Partnerships

Ian Stewart: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what plans he has to fund Developing Patient Partnerships beyond April 2008; and if he will make a statement.

Ben Bradshaw: A further grant to Developing Patient Partnerships was agreed on the condition that it worked towards self-sufficiency by increasing its subscriber base. There are therefore no plans to provide any further support for Developing Patient Partnerships beyond its current Section 64 grant arrangements that end in March 2008.

Edgware Hospital: Admissions

Andrew Dismore: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps are being considered to provide more beds at Edgware hospital.

Ben Bradshaw: The provision of beds at Edgware hospital is a matter for the local national health service.
	However, we understand that there are no plans to close any beds at Edgware hospital.

Edgware Hospital: Ophthalmology

Andrew Dismore: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what progress has been made in allowing opticians to refer patients direct for ophthalmology services at Edgware Hospital.

Ben Bradshaw: The provision of ophthalmology services is a matter for the local national health service.
	We understand that a project looking at direct referral from opticians to ophthalmology is under way in the Barnet Primary Care Trust (PCT) area. The project is looking at how and when Barnet PCT can implement direct referral.

Edgware Hospital: Rehabilitation

Andrew Dismore: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps are being taken to develop rehabilitation services at Edgware hospital.

Ben Bradshaw: The development of rehabilitation services at Edgware hospital is a matter for the local national health service.

Edgware Hospital: Standards

Andrew Dismore: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps are being taken to improve management of out-patient and follow-up appointments at Edgware hospital.

Ben Bradshaw: The management of appointments at Edgware hospital is a matter for the local national health service.
	However, we understand that Healthcare Commission wrote to Barnet and Chase Farm hospitals NHS trust regarding problems with the installation of its patient administration system. We have been assured that the problems have now been resolved.

Eyesight: Testing

Andrew Dismore: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many pensioners in Hendon aged over 60 years had free eye tests in the last year for which figures are available.

Ben Bradshaw: The latest year for which data broken down by patient eligibility type are available is 2005-06. During the year ending 31 March 2006, there were 68,633 sight tests paid for by the national health service in Barnet primary care trust (PCT), of which 24,121 were for persons aged 60 or over.
	During the year ending 31 March 2007, there were a total of 70,226 sight tests paid for by the NHS in Barnet PCT. Reliable information broken down by patient eligibility type is not currently available. Information is not available at constituency level.

Family Practitioner Services

Andrew Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps he plans to take to ensure that the proposed 100 new general practitioner practices in the 25 per cent. of primary care trusts with the poorest primary care provision have a remit to prevent as well as treat disease.

Ben Bradshaw: It will be for primary care trusts to determine the precise nature of their service specifications to meet local need. However, the Department has asked that they reflect a strong focus on preventing ill health by reaching out to those communities who need it most and may not readily seek care.

Family Practitioner Services: Barnet

Andrew Dismore: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the  (a) average and  (b) highest number of patients registered with a GP in Barnet was (i) in 1997 and (ii) at the most recent date for which figures are available; and if he will make a statement.

Ben Bradshaw: The information is not available in the format requested. The following table shows patients registered with a practice, rather than a specific general practitioner (GP) within a practice in Barnet in 1997 and 2006.
	
		
			  Selected statistics for selected area as at 1997 and 2006 
			  Number (headcount) 
			   Barnet health authority, 1997  Barnet primary care trust, 2006 
			 Total practices 83 77 
			 GPs (excluding retainers and registrars)(1) 195 218 
			 Registered Patients 363,544 372,760 
			 Average GP list size 1,864 1,710 
			 Average practice list size(2) 4,380 4,841 
			 Largest practice list size(2) 13,292 15,189 
			 (1) General medical practitioners (excluding retainers and registrars) includes GP providers and GP others data as at 1 October 1997, 30 September 2006. (2) GP census collects the number of patients who are registered to a practice rather than a specific GP, therefore it is not possible to ascertain individual GP list sizes.  Source: The Information Centre for health and social care General and Personal Medical Services Statistics.

Family Practitioner Services: Working Hours

Andrew Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what percentage of GP practices offer extended opening hours, broken down by  (a) region and  (b) primary care trust area.

Ben Bradshaw: This information is not collected centrally. However, the latest figures from the Department's quarterly access to primary care survey show that 9 per cent. of patients say they are able to make appointments at their general practitioner practice outside 8am to 6pm Monday to Friday.

Finchley Memorial Hospital

Andrew Dismore: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what progress is being made with the plans to modernise Finchley Memorial Hospital; and if he will make a statement.

Ben Bradshaw: The future of services provided at Finchley Memorial Hospital is a matter for the local national health service.
	However, we have been informed that NHS London approved the strategic outline case for the redevelopment of Finchley Memorial Hospital, including the re-siting of the Marie Foster Centre, in summer 2007.

Food: Environmental Health

Gordon Prentice: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will require local authorities to publish on the web a list of all restaurants and establishments serving food to the public with  (a) the date when last inspected by environmental health officers,  (b) their hygiene scores and  (c) details of any successful prosecutions for breaches of food safety legislation; and if he will make a statement.

Dawn Primarolo: It is not currently a legal requirement for local authorities to display a food business's hygiene inspection information on a website, although over a hundred choose to do so voluntarily. The Food Standards Agency is carrying out an evaluation of these schemes and will consider making a recommendation about a national approach to publishing this information. The recommendation will be based on research the Agency has commissioned on the type of information consumers find useful when making choices about where they purchase food. The Agency will also consider how it can support and encourage all local authorities in publishing this data.

Food: Labelling

Si�n James: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps his Department is taking with food manufacturers to improve food labelling.

Dawn Primarolo: The Food Standards Agency (FSA) has actively engaged with food manufacturers on a number of food labelling issues such as voluntary front of pack nutrition labelling and the European Commission Review of Food and Nutrition Labelling legislation. The FSA's recommended traffic light colour-coded approach to nutrition labelling has been adopted by eight retailers, whose combined sales make up more than 40 per cent. of the retail market, as well as 16 manufacturers and four service providers.
	The Agency is also working with all stakeholders to improve food labelling information through the revision of existing voluntary guidance on clear labelling, country of origin labelling and marketing terms.

Gastrointestinal System: Health Services

Andrew Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what consultations his Department has had with gastroenterologists on the new referral pathways under the choose and book system for patients with gastroenterological disease.

Ben Bradshaw: There are no new referral pathways under the choose and book system for patients with gastroenterological disease. Referral pathways are not the role or purpose of the choose and book system.
	The national choose and book team have however worked closely with senior gastroenterologists and members of specialist gastroenterology organisations to define clinic types and key words that will enable referrers to find these types of services effectively using the choose and book system.

General Practitioners: Barnet

Andrew Dismore: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what GP practices in Barnet offer specialist services; what these services are; and if he will make a statement.

Ben Bradshaw: The provision of specialist services by general practitioners (GP) is a matter for the local national health service.
	However, we have been informed that since the introduction of the new GP contract, Barnet primary care trust has introduced and completed a training programme which has led to the creation of specialist practitioners covering diabetes, dermatology, coronary heart disease and medicines for older people.

General Practitioners: Income

Andrew Dismore: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the  (a) average and  (b) highest annual income was among GPs in Barnet in (i) 1997 and (ii) 2006-07; and if he will make a statement.

Ben Bradshaw: Information for both average and highest annual earning general practitioners in Barnet in 1997 and 2006-07 is not collected centrally.

Health Education: Alcoholic Drinks

Mark Simmonds: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much the Government plan to spend in each of the next three years on improving the public's knowledge of what constitutes a unit of alcohol.

Dawn Primarolo: Public knowledge of what constitutes a unit of alcohol forms a part of all Department of Health and Home Office Social Marketing Campaigns dealing with the risks associated with drinking above recommended Government limits.
	In the financial year 2007-08 the Home Office will spend 3.5 million and the Department 1.3 million on campaigns to raise public awareness about binge drinking.
	For the financial year 2008-09 the Department plans to spend 6 million on a new national campaign to raise public awareness about the risks of binge and harmful drinking. The major component of this campaign will seek to improve public knowledge about units and how to assess how much you drink. The level of Home Office contribution to this campaign has not been confirmed.
	The current campaign targeting 18 to 24-year-old binge drinkers will continue. We expect the overall national campaign to run over a number of years, however, for the financial year 2009-10, funding decisions have not yet been made.

Health Services: Armed Forces

Shailesh Vara: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the answer of 7 January 2007,  Official Report, column 107W, on health services: armed forces, whether specific financial provision is made for each primary care trust to provide care to injured service personnel once they have left the military.

Ben Bradshaw: The national health service is responsible for the health care of service personnel on leaving the armed forces. Funding for ex-service personnel is on the same basis as funding for other members of the population.

Health Services: Foreigners

Andrew Dismore: To ask the Secretary of State for Health in what circumstances foreign national patients are expected to pay for  (a) emergency treatment,  (b) routine hospital treatment,  (c) GP services and  (d) primary care; and if he will make a statement.

Dawn Primarolo: Free national health service treatment is based on ordinary residence in the United Kingdom. Foreign nationals may have to pay for NHS treatment if they are not ordinarily resident in the UK.
	For primary medical services, acceptance onto an NHS list is at the discretion of general practitioner (GP) practices. If a practice refuses an application to provide free primary medical services to a foreign national on the basis that the individual cannot be regarded as ordinarily resident in the UK, they can offer to treat the person as a private patient. The amount charged is a matter for the practice.
	For hospital treatment, anyone who is not ordinarily resident in the UK is considered an overseas visitor and is subject to the NHS (Charges to Overseas Visitors) Regulations 1989, as amended. They will be charged for any hospital treatment unless an exemption from charge category within these regulations applies to them.
	No charge may be made to anyone, regardless of residency, for treatment provided by a GP that he or she considers to be immediately necessary, or for treatment provided solely in an Accident and Emergency (A and E) department of a hospital. Emergency treatment provided in a hospital other than in an A and E department will not be free unless the individual is entitled to free treatment in his or her own right.

Health Services: Hampshire

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment he has made of levels of health inequality in each council area in Hampshire over the last 10 years; and if he will make a statement.

Dawn Primarolo: Primary care trusts (PCTs) are responsible for commissioning services to meet the needs of the communities that they serve. PCTs use information on health inequalities as part of their assessment of the health needs of local populations, which in turn inform their operating frameworks.
	The South Central Strategic Health Authority has assured the Department that PCT frameworks for 2008-09 and beyond, are currently being produced alongside and in conjunction with the local area agreements produced by local authorities.
	One of the main criteria that is checked when these plans are assessed by the strategic health authority is that they address health inequalities adequately.

Health Services: Hendon

Andrew Dismore: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps are being taken to improve community health services for Hendon residents; and if he will make a statement.

Ben Bradshaw: The provision of community services is a matter for the local national health service.
	However, we understand that Barnet primary care trust is looking at ways to improve community services as part of the Barnet, Enfield and Haringey clinical strategy.

Health Services: Publicity

Andrew Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much is being spent in the End Waiting, Change Lives campaign on  (a) button badges,  (b) lapel badges,  (c) stickers,  (d) campaign packs and  (e) patient leaflets; and what volume of each item is being produced.

Ben Bradshaw: The total cost of the button badge, lapel badge and stickers is 8,165. 20,000 button badges, 30,000 lapel badges and 70,000 stickers have been produced.
	The total cost of the campaign packs is 71,292 which includes copywriting, design, and print costs. In total 23,350 campaign packs have been produced.
	The total cost of the patient leaflet is 35,493. This includes copywriting, design, print, translation and production of alternate formats. 1 million copies were produced.

Health Services: Standards

Andrew Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what criteria are used to determine that it is not in the best interests of an individual patient for the 18-week referral-to-treatment target to apply to them.

Ben Bradshaw: There will always be some patients for whom starting treatment within 18-weeks of referral would not be clinically appropriate.
	Decisions on whether it is clinically appropriate to start treatment within 18 weeks of referral rests with clinicians in consultation with patients.

Health: Barnet

Andrew Dismore: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many people in Barnet were diagnosed with  (a) type 2 diabetes,  (b) obesity problems as (i) adults and (ii) children,  (c) alcohol dependency and  (d) drug dependency in (1) 2006-07 and (2) 1997; and if he will make a statement.

Ben Bradshaw: The information is not available in the format requested. Data on the number of people in Barnet with type 2 diabetes, alcohol dependency and drug dependency are not available centrally.
	The following table provides estimated prevalence of obesity among adults aged 16 and over, along with associated confidence intervals for Barnet local authority (LA). These estimates are taken from model-based estimates of healthy lifestyle behaviours, and are only for the combined years 2003-05. Model-based estimates by LA are not available for children.
	
		
			  Model-based estimates of obesity prevalence in Barnet local authority, 2003-05 
			   Percentage 
			 Estimated prevalence of obesity 16.8 
			 95 per cent. lower confidence interval 15.2 
			 95 per cent. upper confidence interval 18.6 
			 Comparison of estimated prevalence for obesity with national estimate(1,2) 1 
			 (1) The national estimate is derived directly from the Health Surveys for England 2003-05 (with associated confidence intervals) and therefore is not a model-based estimate. (2) It should be noted that the scores for comparing the synthetic estimate to the national estimate relate to the data as follows: 1=CI significantly below NE 2=overlapping, 3=CI significantly above NE. The national estimate is derived directly from the health surveys for England 2003-05 (with associated confidence intervals) and therefore is not a model-based estimate.  Sources: 1. Model-based Estimates of Healthy Lifestyle Behaviours, 2003-05 2. Neighbourhood Statistics, Office for National Statistics (ONS)

Hospitals: Cleaning Services

Anne Milton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many representations his Department received from  (a) strategic health authorities,  (b) primary care trusts,  (c) hospital trusts and  (d) members of the public on lack of (i) clean towels and (ii) clean bedding in hospitals in each year since 1997.

Ben Bradshaw: The Department receives around 100,000 letters and e-mails a year from hon. Members and members of the public. In the three-year period to 31 December 2007, a total of around 3,000 of these concerned the wider need to ensure that patients in hospital are treated in a clean and safe environment. It is not possible to identify how many of the inquiries were specifically concerned with the availability of clean towels and bedding.
	Local health service managers are responsible for the provision of adequate supplies of clean linen, including towels and bedding, and it is recognised that patients' care is supported by their effective use.

Incontinence: Medical Equipment

Bob Spink: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  when he will publish an impact assessment for the proposals contained in Arrangements under Part IX of the Drug Tariff for the provision of stoma and incontinence appliances, and related services, to primary care revised proposals;
	(2)  when he will publish a summary of responses to the consultation Arrangements under Part IX of the Drug Tariff for the provision of stoma and incontinence appliances, and related services, to primary care; and if he will make a statement;
	(3)  what response he has made to the results of the consultations on the arrangements under Part IX of the Drug Tariff for the provision of stoma and incontinence appliances, and related services, to primary care; and if he will make a statement.

Ben Bradshaw: The Department intends to publish an impact assessment following detailed evaluation of the responses to the consultation entitled 'Arrangements under Part IX of the Drug Tariff for the provision of stoma and incontinence appliancesand related servicesto Primary Care Revised Proposals' and following further discussion with interested parties. The impact assessment will be published on the Department's website, giving all parties the opportunity to comment on it.
	The consultation is part of an ongoing process that began in October 2005 and two earlier partial regulatory impact assessments were prepared. The first was published in October 2005 with the initial consultation. This included dressings and reagents, as well as stoma and incontinence appliances, as we were also reviewing arrangements for them at that stage. The new arrangements for dressings and chemical reagents were implemented in October 2006. The second was published in November 2006. Copies of both of these have been placed in the Library.
	The latest consultation closed on 28 December 2008 and responses are being evaluated. A summary of these responsesand an indication of next stepswill be published no later than 28 March 2008.

Influenza: Vaccination

Peter Soulsby: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many influenza vaccinations were administered in Leicester in each of the last five years.

Dawn Primarolo: The data on influenza vaccination uptake are collected by the primary care trust (PCT). Data have been provided for the last five years for those aged 65 years and over. Data for those aged 65 years in clinical risk groups have only been collected since 2005-06 and are also provided. This information is shown in the following table.
	
		
			  Vaccination uptake (percentage) among the 65 years and over for Leicester for each year between 2002 to 2006 (cumulative data) 
			65 years and over 
			Leicestershire, Northamptonshire and Rutland Health Authority 
			  Survey year  Strategic health authority (SHA)/primary care trust (PCT) Name  Total persons aged 65 and over from returning practices  Total persons vaccinated  Total percentage uptake 
			 2002-03(1) Eastern Leicester PCT 22,457 14,024 62.4 
			  Leicester City West PCT 19,784 12,162 61.5 
			  South Leicester PCT 25,933 18,480 71.3 
			  Charnwood and North West Leicestershire PCT 29,293 19,852 67.8 
			  Eastern Leicester PCT 21,206 15,456 72.9 
			  Leicester City West PCT 18,168 12,876 70.9 
			  
			 2003-04 South Leicester PCT 26,456 18,752 70.9 
			  Charnwood and North West Leicestershire PCT 36,302 25,420 70.0 
			  Eastern Leicester PCT 22,694 15,793 69.6 
			  Leicester City West PCT 19,658 12,071 61.4 
			  
			 2004-05 South Leicester PCT 26,796 19,708 73.5 
			  Charnwood and North West Leicestershire PCT 36,129 25,504 70.6 
			  Eastern Leicester PCT 22,708 16,132 71.0 
			  Leicester City West PCT 19,598 12,940 66.0 
			  
			 2005-06 South Leicester PCT 27,259 21,102 77.4 
			  Charnwood and North West Leicestershire PCT 37,203 27,686 74.4 
			  
			 2006-07(2) Leicestershire, Northamptonshire and Rutland PCT 104,929 77,861 74.2 
			  Leicester City PCT 41,445 28,425 68.6 
		
	
	
		
			Under 65 years and at risk( 3) 
			  Survey year  SHA/PCT Name  Total persons aged under 65 at risk from returning practices  Total persons vaccinated  Total percentage uptake 
			 2005-06 Leicester City West PCT South 11,201 4,583 40.9 
			  Eastern Leicester PCT 14,392 8,426 58.5 
			  Charnwood and North West Leicestershire PCT 14,521 6,954 47.9 
			  Leicestershire PCT 5,828 2,683 46.0 
			  
			 2006-07(2) Leicestershire City PCT 30,912 13,972 45.2 
			  Leicestershire County and Rutland PCT 52,703 22,881 43.4 
			 (1) For seasons 2002 to 2005 Leicester fell under Leicestershire, Northamptonshire and Rutland health authority. Data here are provided at PCT level (2) For season 2006-07 the geography changed again and data is shown by both Leicestershire, Northamptonshire and Rutland authority and Leicester City PCT. (3) Data for individuals aged under 65 years and in a risk group has only been collated since the 2005-06 season and therefore unavailable for previous years  Notes: 1. Uptake figures include only those general practitioner practices who have returned confirmation to the survey and reflect data for individuals vaccinated at these premises. 2. The change in geography reflected in uptake returns by PCT mapped to the designated area:  Source: Health Protection Informatics web based reporting site (HPI) Influenza Immunisation Uptake Monitoring Programme Health Protection Agency/Department of Health

Influenza: Vaccination

Andrew Dismore: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many Hendon residents received influenza vaccinations for the 2007-08 winter.

Dawn Primarolo: The data on influenza vaccination uptake are collected by the primary care trust (PCT). Provisional influenza vaccination uptake data up to the end of November 2007 are available for Barnet PCT which includes the constituency of Hendon. They show that 34,693 people aged 65 years and over, and 9,504 people aged under 65 years in clinical risk groups, have received influenza vaccine by the end of November 2007.

National Blood Service

Jim Cousins: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will hold a meeting with hon. and rt. hon. Members with a National Blood Service centre in their constituency to discuss the McKinsey report into the National Blood Service as soon as it is presented to Ministers.

Ben Bradshaw: The National Blood Service (NBS) is an operating division of NHS Blood and Transplant (NHSBT). The chairman and chief executive of NHSBT have indicated that they would be willing to meet with stakeholders, including any hon. Members to explain any changes as a result of the work carried out by McKinsey once they have been agreed.

National Blood Service

Andrew Dismore: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what progress is being made in relation to the review of the National Blood Service, with particular reference to the Colindale Centre.

Dawn Primarolo: The National Blood Service (NBS) is an operating Division of NHS Blood and Transplant (NHSBT). The senior management team and the Board of the NHSBT are currently considering the results of a review of the NBS strategy.
	Details of the proposals for NBS, including plans for the centre in Colindale, will be published shortly. As part of this process, NHSBT will write to all hon. Members.

Negligence

John Baron: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many clinical negligence cases were open on the NHS Litigation Authority database at the most recent date for which information is available; and how many of those cases are being funded by  (a) legal aid,  (b) conditional fee agreements,  (c) before the event insurance,  (d) private means and  (e) other means.

Ann Keen: holding answer 14 January 2008
	The information requested is shown in the following table. The NHS Litigation Authority supplied the data.
	Number of clinical negligence cases open on the NHS Litigation Authority database and their funding arrangements where known as at 31 December 2007:
	
		
			   Number of reported incidents( 1)  open at 31 December 2007  Number of actual claims open at 31 December 2007  Total number of open cases at 31 December 2007 
			 BTE Insurance 17 598 615 
			 Conditional Fee Arrangement 88 2,703 2,791 
			 Legal Services Commission 355 4,492 4,847 
			 Self Funded 30 647 677 
			 Unknown 779 2,203 2,982 
			 Total 1,269 10,643 11,912 
			 (1) Reported incidents are incidents that have been reported but which have not yet been made into an actual claim.

Negligence

John Baron: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many clinical negligence cases were brought in the last year for which information is available; and how many of those cases were funded by  (a) legal aid,  (b) conditional fee agreements,  (c) before the event insurance,  (d) private means and  (e) other means.

Ann Keen: holding answer 14 January 2008
	The information requested is in the following table. The NHS Litigation Authority supplied the data.
	
		
			  Number of clinical negligence cases received by the NHS Litigation Authority in 2006-07 and their funding arrangements where known as at 31 December 2007 
			  Funded by  Number of clinical negligence cases received in 2006-07 
			 BTE Insurance 310 
			 Conditional Fee Arrangement 1,456 
			 Legal Services Commission 1,251 
			 Self Funded 591 
			 Unknown 1,812 
			 Total 5,420

NHS Equipment: Private Sector

Tony Baldry: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what guidance his Department gives to NHS hospital trusts on the use of NHS equipment for private patients; and whether there are restrictions on NHS hospital trusts using specialist equipment purchased by the NHS for treating private patients.

Ben Bradshaw: Legislation allows a national health service trust to offer private health care so long as this does not to any significant extent interfere with the performance of its functions or obligations under NHS contracts.
	A NHS foundation trust may offer private health care, provided that it complies with any restrictions in its authorisation and that the provision of NHS services remains its principal purpose. Legislation limits the total proportion of income a NHS foundation trust may derive from private charges to its 2002-03 level.
	This has been reiterated in guidance. Most recently, the 'Code of Conduct for Private PracticeGuidance for NHS Medical Staff', published in 2003, said that
	Provision of services for private patients should not prejudice the interests of NHS patients.

NHS Foundation Trusts: Mergers

Norman Lamb: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what guidance his Department has produced on mergers between an NHS foundation trust and a non-foundation NHS trust; what his policy is on the treatment of non-foundation NHS trust historic deficits when merging with a NHS foundation trust; and if he will make a statement.

Ben Bradshaw: Monitor (the statutory name of which is the independent regulator of national health service foundation trusts) has issued guidance which address mergers and also acquisitions involving NHS foundation trusts (NHSFTs). These are available on Monitor's website at:
	www.monitor-nhsft.gov.uk.
	Where an NHS trust and NHSFT come together the normal practice has been to deal with these by acquisition rather than merger. The assets and liabilities of the NHS trust transfer intact at their balance sheet value. These values will reflect the impact of historic surpluses or deficits.
	The Department is currently working with Monitor and others on the development of guidance on NHS corporate transactions. This guidance is described in further detail on page 54 of the 2008-09 Operating Framework for the NHS in England.

NHS: Computerisation of Personal Records

Andrew Dismore: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what progress has been made towards computerisation of NHS records of Barnet residents.

Ben Bradshaw: Computerisation of national health service patient records in both primary and secondary care has been a reality across the NHS for many years.
	Barnet and Chase Farm hospital NHS Trust went live with the Cerner Millennium patient administration system, provided through the national programme, in 2007.

NHS: Finance

Andrew Dismore: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the financial position of  (a) Barnet Primary Care Trust,  (b) Barnet Chase Farm NHS Trust and  (c) Royal Free NHS Trust (i) was at the end of 2006-07 and (ii) is expected to be at the end of (1) 2007-08 and (2) 2008-09; and if he will make a statement.

Ben Bradshaw: The following table shows the final accounts for 2006-07 and the quarter 2 2007-08 forecast outturn position for Barnet primary care trust (PCT), Barnet and Chase Farm Hospitals NHS Trust and Royal Free Hampstead NHS trust. Information on the financial plans for 2008-09 is not collected centrally.
	
		
			  000 
			  Organisation name  2006-07 final accounts surplus/(deficit)  2007-08 quarter 2 forecast outturn surplus/(deficit) 
			 Barnet PCT 46 0 
			 Barnet and Chase Farm Hospitals NHS Trust (11,398) 2,594 
			 Royal Free Hampstead NHS Trust 18,005 10,088 
			  Notes: 1. Information in the table provided is already in the public domain and in the Library. 2. An initial high level financial plan for 2008-09 will be collected by the Department on the 31 January. This will be followed by a full collection on the 3 March, and it is planned that these will be signed off by the 31 March. 3. In 2006-07, the system of cash brokerage and planned support that had previously operated across the NHS, was replaced for NHS trusts by a formal system of interest-bearing loans. This is consistent with moving trusts to a foundation trust regime where they need to borrow for working capital needs.  Sources: Audited summarisation schedules 2006-07. Department of Health financial returns 2007-08.

NHS: Questionnaires

Tim Farron: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the cost was of posting the Ipsos MORI NHS questionnaire and reply envelopes by first class post; and what estimate was made of the cost of sending the questionnaires and replies by second class post.

Ben Bradshaw: It is not possible to provide a detailed breakdown of postal or other individual costs involved in the general practitioner patient survey as these relate to the commercial contract with Ipsos MORI. However we can assure that the postal survey was achieved at a substantially discounted rate. First class post has been used as independent expert evidence on postal surveys has shown this to be more effective in administering successful surveys including increased response rates and reducing the need for reminders (and therefore costs).

Nurses: Pay

Andrew Dismore: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the average salary of a  (a) newly qualified nurse,  (b) qualified nurse and  (c) nurse consultant in Barnet was in (i) 1997 and (iii) 2007; and if he will make a statement.

Ben Bradshaw: The information is not available in the format requested.
	It is not possible to distinguish between a newly qualified nurse and a qualified nurse in order to calculate an average salary. Data for nurse and nurse consultant pay are not collected by primary care trust area.
	However, the starting pay for a newly qualified nurse in England in 1997-98 was 12,385. In 2007-08 it was 19,454 in April rising to 19,683 in November.
	Nurse consultants did not exist in 1997.
	There are two pay bands for nurse consultants which depend on the demands of the job.
	In 2007 the nurse consultants' pay bands ranged from 36,11290,607.

Nutrition: Sustainable Development

Peter Ainsworth: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps are taken by the Food Standards Agency to ensure that advice offered to the public on nutrition is compatible with the principles of sustainable development.

Dawn Primarolo: The Agency seeks to take sustainable development into account in its activities and policy decisions, including nutritional advice to the public. This commitment is supported by training and written guidance for staff on applying the principles of sustainable development.

Osteoporosis

Mark Hunter: To ask the Secretary of State for Health with reference to the answer of 14 March 2007,  Official Report, column 447W, on osteoporosis, what steps his Department has taken to ensure that strategic health authorities spend the capital provision for dual x-ray absorptiometer scanning provision for that purpose.

Ivan Lewis: The capital provision of 17 million to improve national health service capacity in dual X-ray absorptiometer (DXA) scanning provision in the diagnosis of osteoporosis has been included in strategic health authorities' (SHAs) strategic capital allocation and is not ring fenced. While the Department does not monitor how SHA strategic capital is spent, it has been clear in its expectations that this funding is spent exclusively on DXA provision. In May 2006, the National Director for Older People, Professor Ian Philp, wrote to SHAs to highlight the importance of DXA scanning in delivering the relevant elements of the National Service Framework for Older People.

Osteoporosis: Drugs

Andrew Dismore: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what progress is being made by the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence in the appraisal of drugs for osteoporosis; and if he will make a statement.

Dawn Primarolo: The National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) received four appeals against its two Final Appraisal Determinations (FADs) on treatments for the primary and secondary prevention of osteoporotic fragility fractures in postmenopausal women.
	The appeals were heard by NICE's Appeal Panel on 22 October 2007. The Appeal Panel upheld the appeals and referred both FADs back to the Appraisal Committee to reconsider its guidance. NICE expects to publish final guidance later in 2008.
	Further detailed information, including the Appeal Panel's decision, is available on NICE's website at:
	www.nice.org.uk/search/guidancesearchresults.jsp?keywords=OsteoporosissearchType=guidance

Patient Choice Schemes

David Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether all patients must be offered access to a consultant within 13 weeks of referral under the choose and book system; whether it is possible to book appointments more than 13 weeks ahead under the choose and book system; and if he will make a statement.

Ben Bradshaw: For the past two years, the national health service has had in place an operational standard for a maximum 13-week wait from general practitioner (GP) referral to first out-patient appointment with a consultant. All patients can expect this minimum standard of access regardless of how the referral is made.
	The choose and book system can facilitate the booking of appointments more than three weeks ahead. It is the responsibility of providers to ensure that they publish sufficient appointment slots on the system to enable GPs and patients to directly book into these slots.

Prescriptions: Fees and Charges

John Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much was raised from NHS prescription charges in  (a) 1997 and  (b) the most recent year for which figures are available.

Dawn Primarolo: Revenue raised from national health service prescription charges collected by pharmacists, appliance contractors and from prescription prepayment certificate fees, in England, are accounted for by financial year. The data requested is shown in the following table:
	
		
			   Prescription charge revenue ( millions) 
			 1996-97 295.7 
			 1997-98 320.9 
			 2006-07 411.7 
			  Notes: 1. Prescription charge income prior to 2001-02 drawn from cash data in appropriation accounts. 2001-02 and subsequent years' data drawn from resource data in summarised accounts. 2. The 2006-07 figure excludes prescription charges collected by dispensing doctors, which are not collected centrally, but remains with primary care trusts.

Pressure Sores

Paul Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health when information on the number of pressure ulcer incidents which have occurred in the last five years will be available; and if he will make a statement.

Ivan Lewis: The number of pressure ulcer incidents in private and public care homes, broken down by local authority, is not collected centrally.

Primary Care Trusts: Tribunals

Theresa May: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether funding was made available by the Government to primary care trusts to cover the cost of reimbursing nursing care charges arising from appeals tribunals.

Ivan Lewis: Primary care trusts have paid out over 180 million as a consequence of retrospective reviews of continuing healthcare, funding was made available by the Department to cover this.

Radiotherapy

Stewart Jackson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many radiotherapy linear accelerators for cancer treatment are in use in each acute hospital trust in the eastern region; and if he will make a statement.

Ivan Lewis: As at the 30 November 2007, there were 31 linear accelerators for cancer treatment installed in six trusts in the East of England Strategic Health Authority region. The following table identifies the individual trusts where the machines are installed.
	
		
			  Name of trust  Number of linear accelerators installed 
			 Cambridge University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust 7 
			 East and North Hertfordshire NHS Foundation Trust 9 
			 Essex Rivers Healthcare NHS Trust 3 
			 Ipswich Hospital NHS Trust 4 
			 Norfolk and Norwich University Hospitals NHS Trust 4 
			 Southend University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust 4 
			 Total for the region 31 
			  Source: Health Protection Agency November 2007 
		
	
	The Department does not routinely keep data on whether the machines are in clinical use or used for research purposes or as a backup machine for routine maintenance.

Recycling

Eric Pickles: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what recycling schemes are in operation in each building operated by his Department.

Ben Bradshaw: For each building for which the Department is responsible, its recycling activity forms part of its general cleaning and waste management contract.

Retirement

Daniel Kawczynski: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will make it his policy to ensure that people retiring early to live in another EEA country are able to obtain an E106 form.

Dawn Primarolo: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to the hon. Member for South-West Devon (Mr. Streeter) on 14 January 2008,  Official Report, column 1026W.

Ritalin: Children

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many methylphenidate prescriptions were issued to children under the age of 18 years in the last year.

Ivan Lewis: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to the hon. Member for Yeovil (Mr. Laws) on 20 November 2007,  Official Report, column 838W.

Royal Free Hospital

Andrew Dismore: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what progress has been made on the Royal Free hospital's bid to become a Foundation Trust.

Ben Bradshaw: The Royal Free Hampstead NHS trust has received the support of the Secretary of State to make an application to Monitor (the statutory name of which is the independent regulator of national health service foundation trusts) to be considered for authorisation as a NHS foundation trust. Subject to meeting Monitor's criteria for assessment, the trust will be authorised on 1 March 2008.

Royal Free Hospital: Paediatrics

Andrew Dismore: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will make a statement on the outcome of the reorganisation of children's services at the Royal Free Hospital.

Ben Bradshaw: The provision of children's services at the Royal Free Hospital is a matter for the local national health service.
	However, we have been informed that the Royal Free Hampstead NHS Trust is conducting patient surveys to see how children and families view the new service.

Royal Free Hospital: Patient Choice Schemes

Andrew Dismore: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what progress has been made on the choose and book system at  (a) the Royal Free and  (b) Barnet and Chase Farm hospitals; and if he will make a statement.

Ben Bradshaw: Royal Free Hampstead hospital NHS trust is currently live with the choose and book (CAB) system, and offers patients direct booking. Barnet and Chase Farm hospitals NHS trust is also live with the CAB system, and currently offers indirect booking, with direct booking scheduled to commence in spring 2008.
	Utilisation of CAB for both providers is shown in the following table.
	
		
			  Percentage 
			   December 
			   2006  2007 
			 Royal Free 17 39 
			 Barnet and Chase Farm 17 24

Smoking: Barnet

Andrew Dismore: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what estimate he has made of the number of people who stopped smoking in Barnet in each of the last three years.

Ben Bradshaw: The following table shows the estimate of the number of people to stop smoking in Barnet in the last three financial years.
	
		
			   Number that successfully quit smoking at the four-week follow up 
			 2004-05 837 
			 2005-06 1,673 
			 2006-07 2,941 
			  Sources: Statistics on NHS Stop Smoking Services in England, April 2004 to March 2005 Statistics on NHS Stop Smoking Services in England, April 2005 to March 2006 Statistics on NHS Stop Smoking Services in England, April 2006 to March 2007 
		
	
	The numbers are based on those who self-report as having successfully quit smoking at a four-week follow up. This indicates someone that has not smoked at all in the two weeks after their initial quit date.

Smoking: Public Places

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment he has made of the impact of the prohibition of smoking in public places on health since its introduction; and if he will make a statement.

Dawn Primarolo: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given on 18 December 2007,  Official Report, column 1365W to my hon. Friend the Member for Livingston (Mr. Devine).

Tuberculosis: Vaccination

Anne Milton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what research his Department has conducted on the likely effect changing the BCG vaccination programme to a selective scheme will have on rates of tuberculosis infection in children.

Dawn Primarolo: The change in BCG vaccination policy was taken following advice from the independent Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI). JCVI has considered the scientific and medical evidence, and a statement of its position on BCG vaccination is available at:
	www.advisorybodies.doh.gov.uk/jcvi/bcg-jcvi-statement_updateAug2007.pdf

Written Questions

David Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Health when he plans to answer written questions  (a) 172430, tabled on 4 December 2007,  (b) 169534, tabled on 26 November 2007 and  (c) 169605, tabled on 26 November 2007; what the reason for the delay is in each case; and if he will make a statement.

Dawn Primarolo: Answers were given on 9 January. We endeavour to answer all parliamentary questions as soon as possible and are taking a number of steps to improve our performance.

DUCHY OF LANCASTER

Departmental Sustainable Development

John McDonnell: To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster 
	(1)  whether his Department is on course to meet the commitments in the Sustainable Operations on the Government Estate targets  (a) to source at least 10 per cent. of its electricity from renewables by 31 March 2008 and  (b) to increase recycling to 40 per cent. of its waste by 2010;
	(2)  whether his Department met the target in the Sustainable Operations on the Government Estate to reverse the then upward trend in carbon dioxide emissions by April 2007;
	(3)  whether his Department is working towards an accredited certified environmental management system (such as ISO 14001 or EMAS)  (a) for its whole estate and  (b) in some of its buildings.

Phil Hope: The Cabinet Office is on track to exceed the commitment in the Sustainable Operations on the Government Estate (SOGE) targets to source at least 10 per cent. of its electricity from renewables by 31 March 2008. The Department is also on target to meet the commitment to recycle 40 per cent. of its waste by 2010.
	The Cabinet Office has implemented an environmental management system (EMS) accredited to ISO 14001 environmental standards. The EMS covers the whole of the Department's core central London estate including Downing street.
	Due, primarily, to a large increase in the size of the Department since the baseline year, the Cabinet Office did not meet the target to reverse the current upward trend in carbon emissions by April 2007.
	The Cabinet Office is committed to meeting the SOGE: climate change and energy targets. As part of this, the Cabinet Office has signed up to the Carbon Trust's Carbon Management programme to improve our energy management practices, identify likely areas for potential energy savings, reduce energy consumption, associated carbon emissions and costs.

Public Participation: Incentives

Francis Maude: To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster pursuant to the answer of 5 December 2007,  Official Report, column 1344W, on public participation: incentives, what payment was made to each participant excluding the cost of accommodation and travel.

Edward Miliband: Each participant received 75 in addition to the cost of accommodation and travel.

Smith Institute

Mark Hoban: To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster when the Charity Commission will complete its investigation into the Smith Institute; and when it will publish the report.

Phil Hope: This is a matter for the Charity Commission as the independent regulator of charities in England and Wales. The Commission has told me that it cannot, at this stage, provide a precise timeline for the completion of its inquiry, but that it is currently expected to conclude in the next few months. The Commission will, as is its normal practice, publish a report of its findings after the inquiry is completed, setting out any wider lessons for the charity sector.

WORK AND PENSIONS

Children Daycare

Danny Alexander: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how much has been spent on each means of communication under the national communications campaign to communicate the benefits of formal childcare in each month since its launch.

Beverley Hughes: I have been asked to reply.
	Since the launch of the DCSF national communications campaign to communicate the benefits of formal childcare to low income parents in March 2007, the following has been spent on each means of communication by month:
	
		
			  2007 
			   
			   March  April  May  June  July  Aug ust  Sept ember  Oct ober  Nov ember  Dec ember 
			 Direct mail 115,356 49,299  200,345 189,872  
			 Leaflet distribution through door drop and third parties 17,406 14,854 17,126 69,592 12,861 7,988 
			 Face to face in supermarkets and shopping centres in low income areas 49,545   149,443 65,383  
			 Advertising (radio, press, posters,) 332,069  93,880  44,396 21,466 
			 PR   28,536 28,536 28,536   22,860 37,860 22,860 
		
	
	This spend includes costs for several campaign strands, all of which communicate the benefits of formal childcare: the affordable childcare campaign which used direct mail, leaflet distribution, advertising and face to face; the London Childcare Affordability Programme campaign, which used direct mail and leaflet distribution; the targeted campaign to Pakistani and Bangladeshi parents, which launched in December with radio advertising; and PR activity to promote early learning and childcare.

Children: Maintenance

David Evennett: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what estimate he has made of the amount of extra maintenance which might be paid by compliant non-resident parents under the provisions of the Child Maintenance and Other Payments Bill.

James Plaskitt: Table 19.5 of the September 2007 Child Support Agency Quarterly Summary of Statistics shows that in the year to April 2007, the CSA collected or arranged through Maintenance Direct 890 million of child maintenance, including the collection of arrears.
	In the year to April 2016 the value of child maintenance collected or arranged through the statutory maintenance service is expected to be around 1.3 billion. The reforms are also expected to create an additional 200,000 voluntary arrangements, with an estimated value of maintenance flowing of 250 million.
	These figures are based on the current best available evidence base. They are however subject to behavioural uncertainties and depend on the choices that parents make, as well as the decisions that would be made by the Commission and should therefore be treated as indicative only.

Departmental Illegal Immigrants

Damian Green: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many illegal immigrants have been discovered working for his Department and its agencies in the last year for which figures are available.

Anne McGuire: There are no cases of which we are aware of illegal immigrants who have been discovered working for the Department for Work and Pensions in the last year.

Departmental Manpower

Theresa May: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many  (a) men and  (b) women of each civil service grade are employed by his Department.

Anne McGuire: The number of people employed in the Department appear in civil service statistics collected and published by the Office for National Statistics. The most recent publication is for the year to 30 September 2006. Table H of the publication presents permanent employees by Department, responsibility level, ethnic origin and gender.
	This can be found at:
	http://www.statistics.gov.uk/downloads/theme_labour/2006CivilServiceStatistics.pdf
	http://www.statistics.gov.uk/downloads/theme_labour/2006CivilService2006TablesandCharts.xls

Departmental Sustainable Development

John McDonnell: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions whether his Department is working with an accredited certified environmental management system  (a) for its whole estate and  (b) in some of its buildings.

Anne McGuire: holding answer 10 December 2007
	The Department for Work and Pensions meets the mandate within targets for sustainability on the Government estate by operating a corporate environmental management system, based on ISO 14001 across all its functions. It is not, at this time, intended to seek certification for this. Jobcentre Plus (an executive agency of DWP) operates an environmental management system which is accredited to ISO 14001 within its South East areathis covers 88 buildings and 6,000 staff.
	Additionally, our estates partnerLand Securities Trilliumoperates an environmental management system accredited to ISO 14001, covering all the estates functions delivered by them at sites occupied by DWP.

Elderly: Scotland

Alistair Carmichael: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what steps his Department plans to take to assist elderly people in Scotland over the winter months in 2008.

Mike O'Brien: In winter 2006-07 we made 1,028,120 winter fuel payments to people in Scotland. Figures are not yet available for this winter, but we expect the numbers to be similar.
	In addition, we are currently undertaking a fuel poverty partnership pilot with the energy industry. This targets 250,000 pensioners in receipt of pension credit throughout England, Scotland and Wales, which aims to increase the take up of energy efficiency measures and Warm Front grants. In Scotland 16,500 recipients of pension credit will be contacted.
	In the event of sustained freezing temperatures, eligible customers (generally those in receipt of income related benefits) may be entitled to cold weather payments. All of these activities are part of the cross government Keep Warm Keep Well initiative which aims to tackle fuel poverty.

Elderly: Scotland

David Heathcoat-Amory: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many people employed in his Department work on administering EU structural funds, and what the cost of such staff was in 2006-07.

James Plaskitt: In 2006-07 people were employed in the Department for Work and Pensions on administering EU structural funds, and the running costs related to these staff were 2.2 million.

Financial Services: Religion

Tony Baldry: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what steps the Government are taking to improve access to suitable financial instruments to reduce financial exclusion amongst those unable to use conventional financial arrangements due to their religious beliefs.

Andy Burnham: I have been asked to reply.
	It is the Government's strong belief that everyone, irrespective of their religious beliefs, should have access to appropriate financial products and services. To this end, the Government have introduced a number of legislative changes since 2003, including those to allow the equal tax treatment of mortgages that comply with Sharia'a principles, and will continue to make further changes where necessary. In addition, in April 2007 my right hon. Friend the Member for Normanton (Ed Balls), the then Economic Secretary to the Treasury, announced that National Savings and Investments (NSI) would assess the feasibility of the Government issuing Sharia'a compliant retail products. NSI will report back to Ministers in spring 2008.

Fuel Payments

Julia Goldsworthy: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions pursuant to the answer of 27 November 2007,  Official Report, columns 333-34W, on fuel payments, in what form information relating to eligibility for winter fuel allowance is  (a) collected and  (b) made available; and what estimate his Department has made of the number of pensioner households eligible for the winter fuel allowance in (i) Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly, (ii) the south west and (iii) England.

Mike O'Brien: The vast majority of winter fuel payments are made automatically because most people aged 60 and over are receiving a DWP benefit which allows us to check their eligibility based on information on our departmental computer systems. A person is ineligible for a winter fuel payment if, for example, they are serving a custodial sentence or have been in hospital for more than 52 weeks.
	A small number of people who are not in receipt of a benefit administered by DWP need to complete a claim form so that we can assess their eligibility. Our publicity campaign, which we run each year, includes advertisements in the press and information in leaflets. This informs people of the qualifying conditions and how to claim if they need to.
	It is not possible to give an estimate of the number of pensioner households eligible for a winter fuel payment in Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly, the south west and England. This is because we do not know whether people whose details are not held by departmental systems may be eligible, unless they provide the relevant information on a claim form.
	 Notes:
	1. To qualify for a winter fuel payment a person has to be aged 60 or over and ordinarily resident in Great Britain during the September qualifying week but there are some exclusions to the qualifying conditions.
	2. Statistics showing the number of households and individuals who receive winter fuel payments are placed in the Library each year.

Jobcentre Plus: Rural Areas

Julia Goldsworthy: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions pursuant to the answer of 13 December 2007,  Official Report, columns 803-04W, on Jobcentre Plus: rural areas, 
	(1)  what estimate he has made of the cost of introducing flexible support arrangements for jobseekers;
	(2)  what assessment of need takes place in planning provision for flexible support arrangements by Jobcentre Plus;
	(3)  what flexible support arrangements are put in place by Jobcentre Plus, broken down by area.

Caroline Flint: holding answer 7 January 2008
	 The administration of Jobcentre Plus is a matter for the chief executive of Jobcentre Plus, Lesley Strathie. I have asked her to provide the hon. Member with the information requested.
	 Letter from Mel Groves, dated 16 January 2008:
	The Secretary of State has asked me to reply to your questions about the provision of flexible service support arrangements provided by Jobcentre Plus. This is something which falls within the responsibilities delegated to Ms Strathie as Chief Executive of Jobcentre Plus. I am replying in her absence as Acting Chief Executive.
	We wrote to you on 13 December providing information regarding those factors that District Managers consider when reviewing local Service Delivery Plans. Every effort is made to ensure that all customers can access our services regardless of where they live. If there are concerns about customer access to a Jobcentre, we can arrange for flexible service provision.
	The provision of services in our Districts, including flexible arrangements, follows an assessment of customer needs. This takes into account local knowledge, local circumstances, national priorities, and follows consultation with local stakeholders as how best to meet customer needs in the most efficient and effective manner.
	I am sure that you will be aware of the Cornwall Works programme (that part of Cornwall's Local Area Agreement delivering on the worklessness agenda). This programme is a successful consortium of service providers, including a key input from Jobcentre Plus, and has introduced a Neighbourhood Action Team for Pengegon and Parc an Tansys. The collective effort of this group has facilitated the provision of services directly to customers in housing estates who need more support to address worklessness. This is clearly helping those who would not normally seek out services from a Jobcentre and is helping those in greatest need to find work or support in becoming ready for work. I am pleased that the concept of the Neighbourhood Action Team is likely to be expanded with the help of European Social Funding. I understand that Pengegon and Parc an Tansys as well as Redruth North, parts of Pool and Illogen are specifically earmarked.
	The District has already successfully used European Social Funding to finance a series of projects, working with local organisations, to target help and support for those communities where there is greatest need.
	There is also a great deal being done to meet the needs of customers in the Devon and Cornwall District in general and specifically for customers in and around your constituency. The flexible service provision includes:
	access to a New Deal Lone Parent Adviser on an ad hoc basis in Children's Centres in Falmouth, Penryn and at a Family Centre in Falmouth;
	access to a New Deal Lone Parent Adviser and Disability Employment Adviser on a fortnightly basis at 'Link into Learning' in Falmouth;
	joint working arrangements with the Children's Centres in Redruth, Camborne and St Day.
	Furthermore during the consultation period on the closure of Camborne Jobcentre, Kerrier District Council offered the possibility of sharing their premises. This was subject to agreement by their Scrutiny Committee.
	I am confident that the variety of programmes and activities supports our customers in Devon and Cornwall and your constituents. I encourage this type of support activity throughout Jobcentre Plus as it helps focus on greatest need and compliments the services already provided through our network of Jobcentres, Contact Centres and Benefit Delivery Centres.
	Jobcentre Plus does not maintain a central list of the flexible support arrangements in place or a central record of the cost associated with introducing those arrangements and this information could only be obtained at disproportionate cost. Information is held at District level because the arrangements tend to change and adapt to meet local circumstances.
	Carolyn Webster, European Social Fund Manager for Devon and Cornwall, would be happy to help if you would like to discuss this local information in more detail, Carolyn can be contacted on 01872 355021.
	I hope this reply is helpful.

Jobseeker's Allowance: Peterborough

Stewart Jackson: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what estimate he has made of the number of people in Peterborough constituency in receipt of jobseeker's allowance who have been offered suitable work and have refused it in the last 12 months; and if he will make a statement.

James Plaskitt: The available information is that from August 2006 to July 2007, 10 people in Peterborough received jobseeker's allowance sanctions for refusal of employment.

Joint Child Poverty Unit

Julia Goldsworthy: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what his responsibilities are in relation to the Joint Child Poverty Unit; and what arrangements are in place for liaison with other Departments on the work of the Unit.

Caroline Flint: holding answer 14 January 2008
	The Child Poverty Unit brings together officials from both the Department for Work and Pensions and the Department for Children, Schools and Families. It will report to Ministers in both Departments and to a child poverty board comprised of senior officials from across Whitehall. At ministerial level, this board will report to the Cabinet Committee on Domestic Affairs (Families, Children and Young People).
	The unit will play a lead co-ordinating role, as the Government pursue their multi faceted child poverty strategy which includes transport, health and regeneration as well as employment, skills and the tax and benefit system, on the way towards our ambitious but vital goal of eradicating child poverty by 2020 a reality.
	The unit is also currently setting up working groups with officials across a number of Government Departments and local government offices, and will work closely with HM Treasury.

Pensions

Nigel Waterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many people receive the retirement pension age addition for those aged 80 years or over in each constituency in England.

Mike O'Brien: The information has been placed in the Library.

Pensions

Danny Alexander: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what discussions officials in his Department have had with officials from HM Treasury on increasing the level of trivial commutation.

Mike O'Brien: Officials meet regularly with officials from HM Treasury on this and other matters.

Pensions

Danny Alexander: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions in which year the Government plans to reinstate the link between earnings and the basic state pension.

Mike O'Brien: In the Government's White Paper Security in retirement: towards a new pensions system we stated,
	During the next Parliament...we will re-link the uprating of the basic state pension to average earnings. Our objective, subject to affordability and the fiscal position, is to do this in 2012 but in any event at the latest by the end of the next Parliament. We will make a statement on the precise date at the beginning of the next Parliament.

Pensions: Financial Assistance Scheme

Susan Kramer: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what the Financial Assistance Scheme's running costs were in each year in which figures are available.

Mike O'Brien: Total administration costs since the Financial Assistance Scheme was announced in May 2004 are shown in the following table.
	
		
			  Financial year  Expenditure ( million) 
			 2004-05 1.06 
			 2005-06 4.73 
			 2006-07 3.99 
			 2007November 2007 1.79 
			  Note: The administrative costs for 2005-06 include the initial set up costs for the procurement, development and delivery of the FAS IT system to support FAS assessments and payments.

Performance Appraisals

Danny Alexander: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions 
	(1)  what percentage of staff in his Department met  (a) 100 per cent.  (b) 90 per cent.  (c) 80 per cent.  (d) 70 per cent.  (e) 50 per cent.  (f) 40 per cent.  (g) 30 per cent.  (h) 20 per cent.  (i) 10 per cent. and  (j) none of their objectives and targets in their most recent appraisals;
	(2)  what percentage of staff in his Department met  (a) 100 per cent.  (b) 90 per cent.  (c) 80 per cent.  (d) 70 per cent.  (e) 60 per cent.  (f) 50 per cent.  (g) 40 per cent.  (h) 30 per cent.  (i) 20 per cent.  (j) 10 per cent. and  (k) none of their objectives and targets in their most recent appraisals.

Anne McGuire: The information requested is not available in the format requested.

Performance Appraisals

Danny Alexander: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what objectives, targets or standards new employees in his Department are required to meet in their probationary period; and how the performance of new recruits in his Department is assessed.

Anne McGuire: Probationers and new recruits are expected to work to the same standards of behaviour and attendance as all other employees in the Department.
	New recruits must complete a probation period of six months. During this time the probationer's attendance, capability and conduct is monitored. Appropriate objectives and targets are set by line managers according to the particular role and degree of training required.
	The performance of new recruits is assessed in the same way as any other employee in the Department. DWP has a Performance and Development System to support day-to-day performance management which applies to all staff up to and including Grade 6.

Social Fund

Julia Goldsworthy: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many successful applications to the Social Fund have been made in each of the last five years; and what proportion of these applications were made  (a) by telephone,  (b) in writing and  (c) by face-to-face interview.

James Plaskitt: The available information is given in the following tables. The data cannot be broken down into applications made by  (a) telephone,  (b) in writing and  (c) by face-to-face interview.
	
		
			  Social fund initial awards for Great Britain 
			  thousand 
			   Community care grants  Crisis loans  Budgeting loans 
			 2002-03 245 1,064 1,251 
			 2003-04 256 1,059 1,250 
			 2004-05 261 1,000 1,200 
			 2005-06 275 1,016 1,217 
			 2006-07 271 1,072 1,298 
		
	
	
		
			  Social fund initial awards for Great Britain 
			  thousand 
			   Sure start maternity grants  Funeral payments  Total (all five award types) 
			 2002-03 225 42 2,827 
			 2003-04 226 43 2,834 
			 2004-05 225 40 2,727 
			 2005-06 225 38 2,771 
			 2006-07 224 37 2,902 
			  Notes: 1. Figures do not include awards made after review, reconsideration or appeal. 2. Totals may not sum due to rounding.  Source: DWP Social Fund Policy, Budget and Management Information System

Social Security Benefits: Pensioners

Barry Sheerman: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what the average value of benefits in kind provided by the state was to  (a) single pensioners and  (b) pensioner couples in Huddersfield in 1996-97 and in each year since then.

Mike O'Brien: A wide range of services and benefits in kind are available to older people and these are administered both centrally and locally. As a result, the information is not available in the format requested: some information is not collected and some could be obtained only at disproportionate cost. The information which is available is given as follows.
	 (i) NHS services
	People aged 60 and over are able to claim free prescriptions and eye tests on the grounds of age.
	The NHS services information is not available broken down into single pensioner and pensioner couples.
	Information on the value of medicines provided by the national health service (NHS) to pensioners is available only at primary care trust level.
	The following table shows the estimated net ingredient cost (NIC) of medicines dispensed by the NHS in the community, to patients aged 60 and over, in the South Huddersfield and Huddersfield Central PCTs which existed from October 2000 to September 2006.
	
		
			  Total NIC spent on people over 60 claiming free prescriptions 
			   
			  Financial year  PCT South Huddersfield - NIC( 1)  PCT Huddersfield Central NIC( 1) 
			 October 2000 - March 2001 1,556,247 4,578,673 
			 April 2001 - March 2002 3,660,956 9,996,305 
			 April 2002 - March 2003 4,274,282 11,269,579 
			 April 2003 - March 2004 5,031,551 12,547,823 
			 April 2004 - March 2005 5,363,708 13,115,300 
			 |April 2005 - March 2006 4,986,221 11,766,929 
			 (1) These figures have been taken from the prescription cost analysis database and are estimates based on a sample of prescriptions.  Notes: Net Ingredient Cost (NIC) - NIC is the basic cost of a drug. It does not take account of discounts, dispensing costs, fees or prescription charges income. Data for the period April 2006 to September 2006 are not available as they are part year. 
		
	
	Free NHS sight tests were made available to people aged 60 and over from 1 April 1999. Information on the value of NHS sight tests provided to people aged 60 and over within the area of the former Huddersfield Central primary care trust (PCT) and South Huddersfield PCT is only available on a consistent basis for the years set out in the following table:
	
		
			  Financial year  Number of free NHS sight tests given to people aged 60 and over within Huddersfield Central PCT  Estimated cost of NHS sight tests to people aged60 and over in Huddersfield Central PCT ()  Number of free NHS sight tests given to people aged60 and over within South Huddersfield PCT  Estimated cost of NHS sight tests to people aged 60 and over in South Huddersfield PCT () 
			 2003-04 16,598 286,000 2,863 49,000 
			 2004-05 15,868 283,000 2,875 51,000 
			 2005-06 16,632 306,000 3,483 64,000 
			  Note: 2006-07 sight test data are not available at PCT level. Strategic health authority (SHA) and primary care trust (PCT) level data for the first half of 2007-08 will be available in the NHS Information Centre for Health and Social Care's publication General Ophthalmic Services: Activity Statistics for England and Wales: April 2007-September 2007 due to be published by March 2008. 
		
	
	Information on the age of adults who qualify on grounds other than their age for help with other NHS services, such as optical vouchers or relief from dental charges, is not collected centrally.
	 (ii) Social services
	The table shows gross current expenditure for Kirklees metropolitan district council, which includes Huddersfield council, on older people aged 65 or over from 1996-97 to 2005-06. Social services information is not available broken down into single pensioner and pensioner couples. Information is not available separately for Huddersfield.
	
		
			  Gross current expenditure( 1 ) by Kirklees metropolitan council on older people (aged 65 or over) 
			  000 
			  Year (1 April to 31 March)  Gross current expenditure 
			 1996-97 39,360 
			 1997-98 40,113 
			 1998-99 43,639 
			 1999-2000 46,928 
			 2000-01 48,970 
			 2001-02 54,971 
			 2002-03(2) 58,353 
			 2003-04(3) 60,522 
			 2004-05 70,552 
			 2005-06 77,061 
			 (1) Gross expenditure includes income from client contributions, but excludes capital charges and certain income items which count as expenditure elsewhere in the public sector, such as contributions from primary care trusts. This is to avoid double counting within the aggregate public sector accounts of the money involved. (2) From 2002-03 onwards, the data include clients who transferred to council with social services responsibilities (CSSR) support on 8 April 2002, who were formally in receipt of higher rates of income support under the Department for Work and Pensions preserved rights scheme. (3) From 2003-04, additional funding was made available to CSSRs via the Supporting People grant.  Source: Revenue outturn (RO3) and personal social services expenditure (PSS EX1) returns 
		
	
	 (iii) Television licences
	Free television licences for people aged 75 or over were introduced in November 2000. TV Licensing, who administer free licences as agents for the BBC, are not able to provide geographical breakdowns of licences issued. However, figures, shown in the following table, are available for the number of households with at least one person aged 75 or over claiming Winter Fuel Payments in Huddersfield constituency. These people would be eligible for a free television licence.
	
		
			  Huddersfield constituency 
			   Number of households with someone aged 75 or over 
			 2004-05 5,085 
			 2005-06 5,180 
			 2006-07(1) 5,150 
			 (1) Main payment run only  Note: Data prior to 2004-05 are not available.

Social Security Benefits: Telephone Services

Sandra Osborne: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what estimate he has made of the average cost of making a benefit claim by telephone.

Caroline Flint: The Department estimates the average cost of making a benefit claim by telephone using a BT landline telephone is in the following table.
	
		
			  Benefit  Basis of calculation  Cost (p) 
			 Attendance allowance 0800 number Nil 
			 Carers allowance 0800 number Nil 
			 Disability living allowance 0800 number Nil 
			 Incapacity benefit 0800 number Nil 
			 Income support 0800 number Nil 
			 Jobseeker's allowance 0800 number Nil 
			 Pension credit 0800 number Nil 
			 State pension 0845 number. Monday to Friday 6am to 6pm. Based on an average call of 20 minutes at 3.95p per minute including a 6p set up fee per call. 86 
			 State pension 0845 number. Monday to Friday before 6am and after 6pm and on Saturday. Based on an average call of 20 minutes at a BT rate of 1p per minute including a 6p set up fee per call. 26 
			 Social fund crisis loans 0800 number Nil 
		
	
	The Pension Service will always offer to call state pension customers back if they express any concerns about the costs being incurred.
	Customers calling an 0800 or 0845 number from their mobile phone, non BT phone network or from abroad will be charged at the specific operator's call rate.

Social Security Benefits: Young People

Norman Lamb: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many women aged  (a) 19 years and under and  (b) 15 years and under, with dependent children, are in receipt of income-related benefits in England; and what the average amount of benefit is they receive.

James Plaskitt: The information is not available.
	There are currently five income-related benefits: income support; income-based jobseeker's allowance; pension credit; housing benefit; and council tax benefit. All the benefits have different rules as regards to the minimum age of claimants. Income support and jobseeker's allowance cannot be paid to anyone under 16 years of age. Pension credit is for those aged 60 and over. There is no lower age limit for housing benefit, but it is payable to those under 16 years of age only in very exceptional circumstances. Council tax benefit is not payable to anyone under 18 years of age; under that age an individual cannot be liable for council tax.
	New claims for income support and jobseeker's allowance no longer include amounts for children; parents receive child tax credits instead. Because of this, there is no reliable information on those claimants who have dependent children.
	As at May 2004, the most recent available figure, there were 22,000 women aged 16 to 19 claiming housing benefit who had a dependent child in their household. This figure includes both single claimants and those with a partner. The average weekly amount of housing benefit in these cases was 80.10.
	As at May 2004, the most recent available figure, there were 18,000 women under 19 years of age claiming council tax benefit who had a dependent child in their household. This figure includes both single claimants and those with a partner. The average weekly amount of council tax benefit in these cases is 13.00.

Telephone Services

Julia Goldsworthy: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what assessment he has made of the suitability of his Department's call centre automated response systems to meeting the needs of customers; and if he will make a statement.

Anne McGuire: The National Audit Office report on the Department's contact centres (Delivering effective services through contact centres (HC941 published 15 March 2006) noted that
	all the automated systems used by the Department comply with good practice. In particular, they have short scripts and offer useful information to the caller.
	These systems are kept under constant review by managers to ensure they continue to be as helpful as possible.

Telephone Services

Julia Goldsworthy: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what measures are in place to ensure that his Department's customer contact centres facilitate the provision of support to individuals who have a variety of cross-cutting queries to be addressed in a single contact; and if he will make a statement.

Anne McGuire: The Department's contact centres provide a good quality of service to the majority of its customers but we do recognise that customers who need to deal with more than one part of the Department may not always find it as easy as we would like to get answers to cross-cutting queries. The Department has recently introduced a new internal directory for customer contact staff to use to help signpost customers to the right point of contact for the resolution of their inquiry. This is the first step towards the introduction of a more integrated approach. Our aim is that in the future there should be 'no wrong door' for customers who contact the Department.

ELECTORAL COMMISSION COMMITTEE

Peter Hain

Adam Price: To ask the hon. Member for Gosport, representing the Speaker's Committee on the Electoral Commission whether the Electoral Commission has received the final and comprehensive account of the donations that the right hon. Member for Neath (Mr. Hain) received as part of his campaign for the deputy leadership of the Labour party; and what steps the Commission plans to take with regard to the previously undeclared donations.

Peter Viggers: The Electoral Commission informs me that the right hon. Member for Neath (Mr. Hain) provided further information on 10 January about donations made to his deputy leadership campaign. The Commission is undertaking initial permissibility checks on this information before publishing the relevant details on its website in the register of donations to regulated donees. The Commission will then follow up any outstanding compliance issues.

Political Parties: Finance

Andrew Tyrie: To ask the hon. Member for Gosport, representing the Speaker's Committee on the Electoral Commission pursuant to the answer of 18 December 2007,  Official Report, column 1235W, on political parties: finance, whether the sponsorship or subsidy of a regulated donee's website is a donation or a donation-in-kind; and what records the Commission holds of the regulated donors which have declared such sponsorship.

Peter Viggers: The Electoral Commission informs me that subsidy of a regulated donee's website might constitute a donation (cash or non-cash), depending on the particular circumstances. In the Commission's view, donations in support of websites do not fall within the definition of 'sponsorship' in paragraph 3 of Schedule 7 to the Political Parties, Elections and Referendums Act 2000.
	The register of donations made to regulated donees is published on the Commission's website and includes both cash and non-cash donations. There are two entries on the register of donations to regulated donees which explicitly mention non-cash donations given for website services.